title: Image of the Beast (novel)
text: # Image of the Beast (novel)
  
  Image of the Beast (1968) is a horror erotic novel by American writer Philip José Farmer.
  
  ## Background
  
  The story follows Herald Childe, a private detective, who is sent a snuff film of his partner being murdered by what appears to be a vampire. His investigation into the identity of the killers leads him into a world of apparent monsters who have a predilection for brutal and supernatural sex. The monsters include vampires, werewolves, snake-women, and other undefined shape-changers.
  
  The first printing or first edition of Image of the Beast was written for sf-porn publisher Essex House. It was a paperback selling at $1.95.
  
  The sequel to this novel is Blown.
  
  Image of the Beast was adapted by artist Tim Boxell (under the pseudonym "Grisly") as a comic book published by Last Gasp in 1973, with a second printing in 1979.
  
  