No, but they're both public domain so I'll get on that. I'll be back.
I've only heard of The Monk because it is mentioned in an adaptation of Northanger Abbey...
edited 27th Sep '12 12:06:34 PM by AnEditor
The dumber people think you are, the more surprised they're going to be when you kill them.
Haven't read them yet, but The Monk is on my To Read list. I haven't read a whole lot of gothic novels at all, but I'm planning to.
Interestingly, right now I'm reading The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope, where the central character is a rich tycoon named Augustus Melmotte. I remember wondering if his name was a reference to Melmoth. (There's nothing supernatural or even remotely gothic about the novel or Melmotte's character, but who knows?)
The Castle of Otranto
(1764) is often regarded as the very first gothic novel.
The Castle of Otranto is hilarious, I recommend it. The Monk is good so far. It's like Don Quixote combined with copious amounts of melodrama.
edited 13th Oct '12 2:27:45 PM by Rhea
Let's face it, most Victorian fiction is fun because of the sheer amount of meladrama that's so purple you could have sworn it was being choked by a pulp magazine in a fist fight. Having sadi that, Varney the Vampyre, the Monk, Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym, and Carmilla are my favorites. not because two have unique takes on vampires by today's standards, but there's a genuine feeling of creepyness to them. though varney is like a good pulp novel sensational, fun and shallow, but genuinely moving at the climax. Btw, how Carmila got passed the sensors at the time I'll never know.
No Title
I only read Frankestien and Dracula. I guess those are like newbie starter pack novels.
Captain
Is it okay to revive old threads like this? I just love Gothic literature, from its origins to contemporary lit. Reading Mysteries of Udolpho currently. So far, so gothic. My favorite Gothic books are probably We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962), The Monk (1796), Dracula (1897), and The Bloody Chamber (1979).Anybody here read Bloody Chamber?
One classic that I read is Vathek. It's a gothic tale set in a Arabian Nightsque setting compared to the usual European setting most gothic tales are set in. Its about the titular caliph Vathek who renounces Islam and engages with his mother, Carathis, in a series of licentious and deplorable activities designed to gain him supernatural powers.
When you're not the father, It's a great big surprise. Thats-a-Maury.
I picked up a copy of The Castle of Otranto years ago but never read it, I really ought to get on to that...
Avatar from here.
Love myself some Edgar Allen Poe, but, personally, I haven't read enough classic gothic literature. Carmela and The Vampyre I've read, as well as the obvious classics like Dracula and Frankenstein. I tried reading Varney, but it's just SOOOOOOO long, and I didn't know if it were worth the time investment reading it.
Castle of Ontario I remember trying to read on an audiobook I borrowed from the library...buuuuuuut couldn't finish it in time. Should revisit that one.
https://dragonlasersword.com/
so I'll get on that. I'll be back.
Has anyone here read Melmoth the Wanderer or The Monk by Matthew Lewis? I find the dead Gothic novelists much more frightening than our contemporary fantasy.