The Revenant of Thraxton Hall

AUTHOR’S NOTE

While I have aimed for historical accuracy wherever possible, this is very much a work of fiction and, like the master storyteller himself, Conan Doyle, I never let facts get in the way of a good story. As such, I have taken certain liberties for dramatic purposes. It is no fiction, however, that Conan Doyle and Wilde really were friends and admirers of one another’s work. They belonged to an elite social circle of dazzling artistic talent, which included J.M. Barrie (author of Peter Pan) and Dracula author, Bram Stoker, as well as many famous painters and actors of the day, such as James McNeill Whistler and Sarah Bernhardt, to name-drop but a few.

The time frame of this novel was indeed one of the most turbulent periods in Conan Doyle’s life. His beloved wife, Louise, was diagnosed with consumption (tuberculosis), and his father, Charles Altamount Doyle, an esteemed painter and illustrator in his day, died in an insane asylum after years of battling alcoholism. It was also the year Conan Doyle chose to kill off Sherlock Holmes, a move that sparked public outrage and caused readers of The Strand Magazine to cancel their subscriptions en masse. Many Londoners donned black armbands as a visual protest and sign of mourning.

Although the correct spelling is Daniel Dunglas Home, his name is pronounced Hume. The spelling was changed to make things easier for the reader. While Conan Doyle actually met the “Yankee psychic” (and attended a number of séances conducted by him), Home died from tuberculosis in 1886, eight years prior to the action of the novel. Although his psychic abilities (including mediumship, telekenesis, and levitation) were tested by respected scientists of the time, Home was never caught faking.

Founded in 1882, The Society for Psychical Research boasted many prominent Victorian scientists and philosophers among its members and thrives to this day (http://www.spr.ac.uk/).

Some characters in this novel (such as Madame Zhozhovsky) are composites of actual historical figures. I must also point out that Sir William Crookes was one of the most brilliant scientists of his day and may or may not have had a penchant for top-drawer scotch. Lastly, although he was reputedly an excellent swimmer, Frank Podmore really did die from drowning as Madame Zhozhovksy foretold.