Monsters, vampires, and werewolves are ancient embodiments of human fears, desires, and dreams, or they stem from primal experiences of early humans who processed and coped with such beings in myths. However, we should not dismiss this world, which predominantly consists of terrifying figures, as mere superstition of past times. The fact that such monsters can once again emerge from the human subconscious is demonstrated by artistic movements like symbolism and surrealism, whose representatives have created a barely systematizable world of bizarre beings. While these terrifying figures have sprung from the subconscious of individual artists, there are still monstrous beings in our time, such as the Loch Ness Monster, the Yeti in Tibet, and Bigfoot in America, whose existence many people believe in.

In over 1,200 entries, this reference work provides a clear and comprehensive overview of the latest research on the following topics for both laypersons and experts: monsters (air, land, water), monstrous demons and spirits, hybrids, mythical creatures, mysterious animals, deformities (human and animal), enigmatic humans and human monsters like Countess Bathory, Kürten, etc., vampires, vampiric demons, werewolves, biographies of significant scholars who have dealt with this subject matter, and the central terms related to these topics. This reference work not only reliably provides information on these subjects but also serves as an introductory guide for those interested, as they look up the keywords monsters, hybrids, vampires, and werewolves, along with their cross-references to further articles that offer additional insights and deepen the subject matter.