H. B. (Henry Burgess) Drake

Born in China in 1894, Henry Burgess Drake was a British teacher, orientalist, and author who spent his childhood years in the UK. Sources consistently describe him as Chinese-born and note that he served during World War I before building a career that included teaching as well as writing.

He published under both H. B. Drake and Burgess Drake. He is chiefly remembered for The Remedy (1925), later issued as The Shadowy Thing, a supernatural novel about mind-transference that has often been linked with H. P. Lovecraft’s work. His writing ranged beyond weird fiction too; Chinese White (1950), set in China during World War II, is often singled out as one of his best-known later novels.

Although not a household name now, Drake’s work has had a long afterlife among readers of classic supernatural fiction. The mix of occult ideas, identity slipping out of place, and settings informed by his knowledge of China gives his books a distinctive feel that still stands out today.