This is a list of paranormal books that have been mentioned or encountered. It is not yet known how many of these books exist in the world, although Jurgen Leitner mentioned having 978 in his library at its height.
Overview
Due to Leitner very proudly pasting bookplates inscribed with “From the library of Jurgen Leitner” into every book he owned, books with paranormal properties are often referred to as “Leitners” whether or not they were actually ever in his possession. It is unclear if they were referred to as something else before him, or if they were thought of as “each one a thing unto itself”. Robert Smirke called them “secret” books.
In general, the books are more powerful than any other supernatural artefacts, though individual books may range from “innocuous” to “unsettling” to “murderous”. Leitner refers to them as “the essences of The Entities in a purer form”; they generally only correspond to a single entity (with some exceptions such as the Key of Solomon).
They frequently have unusual interactions with architecture that was either designed by Robert Smirke or based on his principles of balance. It seems to stabilize their effects to a degree and allows for safer storage.
Some of the books can be destroyed by means such as burning while others resist attempts at destruction. Leitner hypothesized that some (likely those affiliated with The Desolation) even liked the flames, and upon burning would be “released to take a different form”. Jonathan Sims similarly theorized that attempting to rip a book of The Slaughter in half may have intensified its effects.
John also mentions that “all” of the books from the library are custom editions of known texts on dæmonology or the arcane, though this idea has not recurred in the canon, with books that would have been known to him and the Institute at that time such as DIG.
Books
| Name | Description | Entity | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Disappearance | A pamphlet that causes the reader to disappear without a trace if read in its entirety. The entity it is aligned with is never revealed, but given that members of the Lukas Family possess a very similar ability, The Lonely seems a likely possibility. If only a small part is read, it will hide the reader from others for a short period of time, as Jurgen Leitner discovered. | The Lonely | |
| A Guest for Mr. Spider | A picture book tied to The Web that entrances its reader and leads them to be taken by Mr. Spider. | The Web | |
| A Journal of the Plague Year | A version of Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year which spreads infection. The entity it is aligned with is never explicitly revealed, but given its themes of disease, it is almost certainly connected to The Corruption. | The Corruption | |
| An Introduction to Higher Anatomy | Part of the “Yousuf case”, which caused Daisy Tonner and Basira Hussain to be familiar with Leitner by name. No other information on the book or its effects are given. | Unknown affiliation | |
| The Boneturner’s Tale | An alternate version of The Canterbury Tales by an unknown author that is aligned with The Flesh and grants its reader the power to manipulate, reshape, or remove bones from living creatures. Last seen in the possession of Jared Hopworth in 1996. | The Flesh | |
| Book of Astronomy | A “strange book of astronomy” used by Sarah Carpenter to chart the stars on Emma Harvey’s suggestion. Sarah never quite “lost herself to the cosmos”, but afterwards her eyes sometimes showed “a reflection of uncanny constellations”. No entity alignment for the book is ever confirmed, but The Vast is a likely possibility. | Possibly the Vast | Speculative title |
| Book of the Dead | An old black book that fills, in blank pages, the date of and details for the death of the reader. It is always gruesome and the date move closer if the reader keeps checking their page. The entity it is aligned with is never explicitly revealed, but given its theme of death, it is most likely connected to The End. | The End | Speculative title |
| Book that eats you | A book that ate Leitner Library assistant Warren, leaving behind a leg, and incited then-fellow-assistant Mikaele Salesa to start looking to leave. | Unknown affiliation, possibly The Flesh | Speculative title |
| Catalogue of the Trapped Dead | Also known as the Skin Book, aligned with The End and can be used to bind a dead person’s spirit, allowing them to be conversed with by the living. Owned by Dr. Margaret Tellison and then for a long time by Mary Keay, who at one point bound herself to it in an attempt to transcend death. Most recently owned by Trevor Herbert and Julia Montauk. | The End | |
| Dictionnaire Infernal | A paranormal version of the book by Jacques de Plancy. Sought after by Michael Crew in 1998 (“the older the better”) and a copy purchased from Lion Street Books. | Unknown affiliation | |
| DIG | Perhaps the simplest of the Leitners, this book contains only the word “DIG” over and over, and inspires the reader to dig. Last known owner was Enrique MacMillan in November 2003 and is currently held in Artefact Storage in a welded-shut box. It is aligned with The Buried. | The Buried | Dig. |
| Ex Altiora | Aligned with The Vast and inspires feelings of vertigo. Used by Michael Crew in 1998 to bind the Lichtenberg-figure creature stalking him, after which it begins to emit the smell of ozone. It is purchased by Dominic Swain and subsequently destroyed by Gerard Keay in 2012. | The Vast | |
| Key of Solomon | A paranormal version of the fourteenth century book. It had been previously owned by MacGregor Mathers. Purchased on eBay by Gertrude Robinson in 2007 and destroyed by her and Jurgen Leitner in 2015. Leitner states that it was one of the very few books that was connected to multiple entities, though he does not specify which ones. | Multiple | |
| Unknown spider book | A book connected to The Web that supposedly inspired the 1960s film 蜘蛛が食べている (kumo ga tabete iru), translated as “Spiders Are Eating”. In turn, this movie inspired Dexter Banks’ final film, Widow’s Weave. It is unconfirmed if the title and language of the book match the original movie and the book was eventually destroyed by Alexia Crawley. | The Web | Speculative title |
| Memory Book | Sasha James at one point had to experiment with writing in the Memory Book during her time as a practical researcher. Stored in The Magnus Institute artefact storage. No other description of the book or its effects are given, but considering Sasha was tasked with writing in it, there is a possibility it was some kind of journal. | Unknown affiliation | |
| Old crumbling book with no library markings | Found by Allan Schrieber, a friend of Elias Bouchard. All the pages appear blank but Elias sees them with faces on them in his dreams. Allan tells Elias that something without eyes “saw him” though the pages and seemed to have hunted him down, killed him, and stolen his eyes after reading it. The entity it is aligned with is never revealed, but there are two likely possibilities; The Eye, given that Allan was certain that something specifically “saw him,” or The Dark, given that Allan’s eyes were stolen. | Possibly The Eye/The Dark | Speculative title |
| Sanskrit poetry book about dead animals | Small animal bones fall from the book when passed through shadow. The bones are “slightly bent and warped into shapes that bones should not form”. “Quite unremarkable” according to Mary Keay and sold by her to Jurgen Leitner. Eventually returned to her after the library attack when stolen from under Reform Club by Gerard Keay in 2002. Last seen in November 2012, in the possession of Mary Keay at Pinhole Books. | Possibly The Flesh/The End | Speculative title |
| Security Camera Instruction Manual | An instruction manual for a security camera aligned with The Eye that has images of its readers within it. After reading it extensively, the reader becomes part of the security system, every camera feeling like an eye of the reader looking back at them. If read too extensively, the manual leads to a disastrous end for its readers. | The Eye | Speculative title |
| The Seven Lamps of Architecture | A book by John Ruskin which gives a sense of walls pressing in around the reader, and may physically entomb them. It interacts differently with Robert Smirke’s architecture. Reading it while in a building designed by Smirke allows the reader to control its architecture. The entity it is aligned with is never explicitly revealed, but the description of its effect is very similar to descriptions of claustrophobia, making The Buried a likely possibility. | Possibly The Buried | |
| Slaughter book | An old and worn paperback aligned with The Slaughter that caused every resident of Lanncraig, Ross-Shire to brutally murder each other. Was found ripped in half with its pages blank and it is speculated that the tearing may have intensified the release of its power. | The Slaughter | Speculative title |
| Small book bound in red | A small, red book that is connected in some way to The Cult of the Lightless Flame. Its exact effect unknown, and was last seen in the possession of Diego Molina in December 2011. The entity it is aligned with was never revealed, but given its connection with The Cult of the Lightless Flame, The Desolation seems the most likely possibility. | Possibly The Desolation | Speculative title |
| Small grey book | A small grey book, possibly in Cyrillic script, that is described as “trying to read its reader back.” It was buried in a stretch of moorland by Michael Crew. While it is never explicitly stated, this book is most likely aligned with The Eye. | Possibly The Eye | Speculative title |
| The Stalwart Hunters’ Almanac | A leather-bound book that appears to cause mutilation of reader corresponding to the passages read. The entity it is aligned with is never revealed, but given the effect of mutilation, it is likely connected to either The Hunt or The Slaughter, if not both. | Possibly The Hunt/The Slaughter | |
| The Tale of a Field Hospital | A supernatural draft copy of the book by Sir Frederick Treeves. Paper cuts from its pages appear to cause death via rapid infection, and the book contains passages regarding the exploits of one Private Amherst. The book was delivered to The Magnus Institute by Joseph Russo along with his statement, and subsequently destroyed via burning by Gertrude Robinson. | The Corruption | |
| The Travels | A book responsible for the death of someone named Mr. Hampton that was presumably burned by Gerard Keay. Though never confirmed, it may be a paranormal version of A Masterpiece to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Traveling by Ibn Battuta, which is often referred to simply as “The Travels.” | Unknown affiliation |