Regularly cited in lists of the world's best horror novels, Dagon tells the story of Peter Leland whose ancestral secrets emerge to plunge him into a world of terror and degradation. Employing the Mythos developed by America's great fantasist, H. P. Lovecraft, this novel transforms traditional Gothic elements into an intense, scarifying, modern work. An international bestseller, Dagon was awarded the Best Foreign Book prize by the French Academy and has ignited spirited debate about its revolutionary approach to its materials. Readers have been known to keep their house lights burning all night while reading this story. "I am honestly convinced that Fred Chappell is one of the finest writers of this time, one of the rare and precious few who are truly 'major.'" - George Garrett, author of Death Of The Fox and The Succession. Author of thirty volumes of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, Fred Chappell has twice won World Fantasy Awards, has appeared in over fifty anthologies, and has gathered some dozen or so literary prizes including Poet Laureate of the state of North Carolina. Retired after forty years of university teaching, he lives in Greensboro, North Carolina, and worships cats.