The main character of the story is Detective Thomas Malone, of Irish descent, who is tracking down Robert Suydam, a wealthy Dutch citizen suspected of engaging in forbidden practices.

"The Horror in Red Hook" was published in the anthology "You'll Need a Night Light" by the British publisher Selwyn & Blount, edited by Christine Campbell Thomson, in 1927. The following year, the text was reprinted in another collection titled "Not at Night!" by Herbert Asbury (Macy-Masius, 1928).