John Gordon

John (Jack) William Gordon (19 November 1925 – 20 November 2017) was an English writer of young-adult supernatural fiction. He wrote sixteen fantasy novels including The Giant Under the Snow, four short story collections, over fifty short stories, and a teenage memoir.

Most of John Gordon's novels are in the supernatural fantasy and horror genres and feature teenagers in the central roles. The adventures are often set in The Fens, an environment John found mysterious and inspirational in his own adolescence, and contain elements East Anglian folklore (such as the doom dog – Black Shuck). His work has been compared to that of the acclaimed ghost novelist M.R. James. Indeed The House on the Brink (1970) is regarded by admirers as one of the greatest novels in the Jamesian Tradition.

His short stories have appeared in more than 50 anthologies and other publications and he is included in The Cambridge Guide to Children's Books in English. His work has been translated into many languages, including Japanese, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Czech, Spanish, Polish and Lithuanian.