Black Sunday (Fantasy and Horror Classics)

Can one man's faith hold back the legions of the damned? In this classic of Russian and Ukrainian Folk Horror, Khoma Brut, a student-philosopher from a seminary, finds his life irrevocably tied to the realm of the supernatural. After a chance encounter where he brutally beats an old woman who transforms into a beautiful, dying girl, Khoma flees back to his school. Soon after, Khoma is summoned to a remote Cossack village. The chief's beloved daughter has died under mysterious circumstances, and her dying wish was for Khoma Brut specifically to spend three consecutive nights reading the sacred Psalms over her corpse in the village church. His task is simple, but the truth is terrifying: the dead girl is the witch he killed. A chilling blend of dark fantasy, grotesque humor, and religious dread, Black Sunday (or Viy) explores the power of folklore, the fragility of faith, and the terrifying consequences of crossing a witch. Khoma's battle is not just for his life, but for his soul, in one of the most original and frightening horror stories ever written.