The Lost Plagues

Throughout history, humanity has faced invisible killers—diseases that struck suddenly, spread silently, and left terror in their wake. Some are remembered; others vanished as mysteriously as they appeared. The Lost Plagues explores the forgotten epidemics, mysterious illnesses, and terrifying outbreaks that shaped communities, inspired superstition, and haunted the collective imagination.

From the hallucinatory horrors of St. Anthony's Fire to the spectral panic of Glanders, from the Red Plague of Pellagra to epidemics that left no explanation behind, Kyle Palmer takes readers on a journey through the dark intersections of disease, fear, and folklore. This is a book of history as much as it is of horror: a record of illness, social panic, and the ways in which invisible threats altered lives, villages, and entire nations.

Rich in detail, eyewitness accounts, and historical research, The Lost Plagues reveals the human story behind every outbreak: the terror, the superstition, and the haunting legacy of diseases that left an indelible mark on our past—and our imagination.