'A fascinating retelling of the Baitâl Pachchisi - Penick is an unusual and extraordinary scholar.'

- Namita Gokhale, from the Introduction

'Ancient fables blurring into one another - lustful monarchs, forlorn princesses, handsome Brahmins and all-powerful deities.'

- Kanishk Tharoor, The Washington Post

'Imagine One Thousand and One Nights, told by a Vetala, a demon whose ''whisper is like the crackling sound of a burning house''.'

- Alida Becker, The New York Times Book Review



Young King Vikramaditya is tasked with transporting a Vetala (corpse-spirit) that hangs from a tree in an abandoned cemetery. Vikramaditya cuts down the corpse, throws it over his shoulder and starts the return journey. On the way, the Vetala tells him twenty-five stories, each ending in a question that Vikramaditya must answer, or else endure unimaginable pain. But when the king answers the question, the Vetala is transported back to the tree and the task begins all over again.

This imaginative retelling by Douglas J. Penick not only narrates the stories that the Vetala tells the king but also gives the Vetala's origin story, as well as a satisfying conclusion to the overarching storyline. It takes us to the core of the stories, bringing out their humour, horror and vitality in vivid and colourful detail. These are tales of passion, valour and love, as well as deceit, cunning and cruelty.

With an introduction by Namita Gokhale that explains the ancient Indian antecedents to these stories that date back to sometime around the first century BCE, Vikram and Vetala: A Transformative Retelling is a treat for fans of gothic and horror fiction.