Lewis's 1974 gothic novel was the starting point for Artaud's only sustained work of fiction: an astonishing exploration of the far edges of death, sexuality and terror. The notorious literary terrorist, best known for his Theatre of Cruelty manifestoes, conducts an evisceration of the original novel, discarding entire chapters, recreating others and sramping his own distinctive identity on the work in his avowed aim to accentuate the story's violence and atrocity to the maximal degree. The result is a searing document of lust and fear.