History Literature / TheBeetle

''The Beetle'' (or ''The Beetle: A Mystery'') is an 1897 mystery horror novel written by the British author Richard Marsh. The book is notable for initially outselling Literature/{{Dracula}}, which was published in the same year, before slipping into relative obscurity.

* [[spoiler: AntiClimax: In the finale, the protagonists chase down The Arab by train as he escapes with a hypnotised Marjorie Lindon. Only, as they approach the station where The Arab is due to arrive, they discover he is already dead. The train he was travelling on crashed and derailed. The cult of Isis also mysteriously blew up with no explanation.]]
* AmbiguousGender: The Beetle often takes the form of a man, called The Arab, however many characters comment on their effeminate features and manner.[[spoiler: It transforms into a woman in front of Sydney, but it is still left ambiguous whether The Beetle is male, female or genderless.]]

* {{Backstory}}: [[spoiler: The reason for The Beetle taking revenge on Paul? When he was a young man, Paul travelled to Egypt and discovered a mysterious woman singing in a tavern. She entranced him with her songs, and he soon found himself being held against his will by her and the cult of Isis. He was hypnotised and forced to watch the cult sacrifice women for several months before breaking free of the woman's influence. In desperation and anger, he managed to choke her to death and escape. The Beetle/The Arab now seeks revenge for her death.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The Arab and the cult of Isis are probably all dead, Marjorie was saved and married Paul and Sydney married Dora. However, Robert is dead and it takes Marjorie many years to recover from her mental trauma]].
* {{Brainwashed}}: The Arab can paralyse and hypnotise anyone they wish. They force Robert to become their slave and later [[spoiler: hypnotises Marjorie.]]
* BrokenBird: [[spoiler: Marjorie after her traumatic experience with The Arab. She eventually gets better]].
* CleaningUpRomanticLooseEnds: [[spoiler: Although Sydney spent most of the book wanting to be with Marjorie, she continues to marry Paul at the end. So Sydney is not left on his own, he marries Dora Grayling. Even Percy Woodville, a hopeless romantic with a crush on Marjorie, ends up marrying one of her bridesmaids]].

* NeverFoundTheBody: [[spoiler: All that is left of The Arab/The Beetle after their train is derailed are scraps of fabric and patches of blood.]]

* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: Several people are described as having gone mad by either seeing the form of The Beetle, or perhaps another form that is never described in the book. [[spoiler: The blood left by The Arab is described as being potentially from a ''reptile'', not a human or insect.]]

* Augustus Champnell - A detective brought in to investigate "The Beetle" by Paul Lessingham.

'''This page is a work in progress.'''

* OldDarkHouse: The Arab lives in a derelict building that was never finished. The inside is always described as being in shadow, so as The Arab, can stay in his natural form of The Beetle.

* DidYouJustScamCthulhu?: The Arab meets with Sydney, hoping he will help him take revenge on Paul. Not being fooled by The Arab's attempt at hypnotism, Sydney uses his electrical equipment and chemical knowledge to scare him off...which surprisingly works! From then on, The Arab believes that Sydney is a powerful magician and humbly asks to be his servant.

* {{Shapeshifting}}

* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm

* DidYouJustScamCthulu: The Arab meets with Sydney, hoping he will help him take revenge on Paul. Not being fooled by The Arab's attempt at hypnotism, Sydney uses his electrical equipment and chemical knowledge to scare him off...which surprisingly works! From then on, The Arab believes that Sydney is a powerful magician and humbly asks to be his servant.

* DidYouJustScamCthulu?: The Arab meets with Sydney, hoping he will help him take revenge on Paul. Not being fooled by The Arab's attempt at hypnotism, Sydney uses his electrical equipment and chemical knowledge to scare him off...which surprisingly works! From then on, The Arab believes that Sydney is a powerful magician and humbly asks to be his servant.

* AbortedArc:

* DidYouJustScamCthulu?: Sydney uses his electrical equipment and chemical knowledge to frighten The Arab...which surprisingly works! The Arab believes that Sydney is a powerful magician and humbly asks to be his servant.

* UnreliableNarrator:

* AmbiguousGender: The Beetle often takes the form of a man, however many characters comment on their effeminate features and manner.[[spoiler: It transforms into a woman in front of Sydney, but it is still left ambiguous whether The Beetle is male, female or genderless.]]

* Backstory: [[spoiler: The reason for The Beetle taking revenge on Paul? When he was a young man, Paul travelled to Egypt and discovered a mysterious woman singing in a tavern. She entranced him with her songs, and he soon found himself being held against his will by her and the cult of Isis. He was hypnotised and forced to watch the cult sacrifice women for several months before breaking free of the woman's influence. In desperation and anger, he managed to choke her to death and escape. The Beetle now seeks revenge for her death.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The Beetle and its cult are probably all dead, Marjorie was saved and married Paul and Sydney married Dora. However, Robert is dead and it takes Marjorie many years to recover from her mental trauma]].
* {{Brainwashed}}: The Beetle can paralyse and hypnotise anyone it wishes. It forces Robert to become its slave and later [[spoiler: hypnotises Marjorie.]]
* BrokenBird: [[spoiler: Marjorie after her traumatic experience with The Beetle. She eventually gets better]].

** "The Woman of Songs" is another member of the cult of Isis, unless they and The Arab are the same person.

* CleaningUpRomanticLooseEnds: [[spoiler: Although Sydney spent most of the book wanting to be with Marjorie, she continues to marry Paul at the end. So he is not left on his own, he is married to Dora Grayling. Even Percy Woodville, a hopeless romantic with a crush on Marjorie, ends up marrying one of her bridesmaids]].

* Shapeshifting

* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm:

* Brainwashed: The Beetle can paralyse and hypnotise anyone it wishes. It forces Robert to become its slave and later [[spoiler: hypnotises Marjorie.]]

* CleaningUpRomanticLooseEnds: [[spoiler: Although Sydney spent most of the book wanting to be with Marjorie, she continues to marry Paul at the end. So he is not left on his own, he is married to Dora Grayling. Even Percy Woodville, a hopeless romantic with a crush on Marjorie, ends up marrying one of her bridesmaids.

* Brainwashed: The Beetle can paralyse and hypnotise anyone it wishes. It forces Robert to become its slave and later [[spoilers: hypnotises Marjorie.]]

''The Beetle'' (or ''The Beetle: A Mystery'') is an 1897 mystery horror novel written by the British author Richard Marsh. The book is notable for initially outselling "Literature/{{Dracula}}", which was published in the same year, before slipping into relative obscurity.

* Marjorie Lindon - The daughter of a prominent politician and the fiancée of Paul Lessingham, much to Sydney's dismay.

* AncientEgypt:
* CosmicHorrorStory: The notorious Beetle has many elements of a creature from a Cosmic Horror story, being an undescribable shapeshifter that drives men to madness and is worshipped by a cult of fanatics.

* Shapeshifting:
* ShapeshifterDefaultForm:

''The Beetle'' (or ''The Beetle: A Mystery'') is an 1897 mystery horror novel written by the British author Richard Marsh.

Paul Lessingham, a prominent politician, is haunted by a shapeshifting Ancient Egyptian entity that seeks revenge on him.

The book is split between four narrators:

* Augustus Champnell - A detective brought in to investigate "The Beetle" by Paul Lessingham.