The Castle of Otranto

By Horace Walpole

The Castle of Otranto is a 1764 novel by Horace Walpole. It is generally regarded as the first gothic novel, and it was indeed the first novel to describe itself by that term. Castle is thus generally credited with initiating the Gothic literary genre, one that would become extremely popular in the later 18th century and early 19th century. Thus, Walpole is arguably the forerunner of such authors as Charles Robert Maturin, Ann Radcliffe, Bram Stoker, and Daphne du Maurier.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Booklassic
• Release date: Jun 29, 2015
• ISBN: 9789635270927

Horace Walpole

Horace Walpole (1717-1797) was an English writer, art historian, Whig politician, and a man of letters, a group of intellectuals dedicated to solving society’s problems. As the youngest son of a prime minister, Walpole was born into a noble family and became an Earl in 1791. Long before that, Walpole was an elected member of parliament, where he represented the Whig party for thirteen years. Because Walpole’s house, called Strawberry Hill, had its own printing press, he was able to enjoy a prolific writing career, publishing many works of fiction and nonfiction. Walpole has been credited for creating the gothic literary genre with his novel The Castle of Otranto.

Book preview

978-963-527-092-7

Chapter 1

Manfred, Prince of Otranto, had one son and one daughter: the latter, a most beautiful virgin, aged eighteen, was called Matilda. Conrad, the son, was three years younger, a homely youth, sickly, and of no promising disposition; yet he was the darling of his father, who never showed any symptoms of affection to Matilda. Manfred had contracted a marriage for his son with the Marquis of Vicenza’s daughter, Isabella; and she had already been delivered by her guardians into the hands of Manfred, that he might celebrate the wedding as soon as Conrad’s infirm state of health would permit.

Manfred’s impatience for this ceremonial was remarked by his family and neighbours. The former, indeed, apprehending the severity of their Prince’s disposition, did not dare to utter their surmises on this precipitation. Hippolita, his wife, an amiable lady, did sometimes venture to represent the danger of marrying their only son so early, considering his great youth, and greater infirmities; but she never received any other answer than reflections on her own sterility, who had given him but one heir. His tenants and subjects were less cautious in their discourses. They attributed this hasty wedding to the Prince’s dread of seeing accomplished an ancient prophecy, which was said to have pronounced that the castle and lordship of Otranto should pass from the present family, whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it. It was difficult to make any sense of this prophecy; and still less easy to conceive what it had to do with the marriage in question. Yet these mysteries, or contradictions, did not make the populace adhere the less to their opinion.

Young Conrad’s birthday was fixed for his espousals. The company was assembled in the chapel of the Castle, and everything ready for beginning the divine office, when Conrad himself was missing. Manfred, impatient of the least delay, and who had not observed his son retire, despatched one of his attendants to summon the young Prince. The servant, who had not stayed long enough to have crossed the court to Conrad’s apartment, came running back breathless, in a frantic manner, his eyes staring, and foaming at the month. He said nothing, but pointed to the court.

The company were struck with terror and amazement. The Princess Hippolita, without knowing what was the matter, but anxious for her son, swooned away. Manfred, less apprehensive than enraged at the procrastination of the nuptials, and at the folly of his domestic, asked imperiously what was the matter? The fellow made no answer, but continued pointing towards the courtyard; and at last, after repeated questions put to him, cried out, Oh! the helmet! the helmet!

In the meantime, some of the company had run into the court, from whence was heard a confused noise of shrieks, horror, and surprise. Manfred, who began to be alarmed at not seeing his son, went himself to get information of what occasioned this strange confusion. Matilda remained endeavouring to assist her mother, and Isabella stayed for the same purpose, and to avoid showing any impatience for the bridegroom, for whom, in truth, she had conceived little affection.

The first thing that struck Manfred’s eyes was a group of his servants endeavouring to raise something that appeared to him a mountain of sable plumes. He gazed without believing his sight.

What are ye doing? cried Manfred, wrathfully; where is my son?

A volley of voices replied, Oh! my Lord! the Prince! the Prince! the helmet! the helmet!

Shocked with these lamentable sounds, and dreading he knew not what, he advanced hastily, - but what a sight for a father’s eyes! - he beheld his child dashed to pieces, and almost buried under an enormous helmet, an hundred times more large than any casque ever made for human being, and shaded with a proportionable quantity of black feathers.

The horror of the spectacle, the ignorance of all around how this misfortune had happened, and above all, the tremendous phenomenon before him, took away the Prince’s speech. Yet his silence lasted longer than even grief could occasion. He fixed his eyes on what he wished in vain to believe a vision; and seemed less attentive to his loss, than buried in meditation on the stupendous object that had occasioned it. He touched, he examined the fatal casque; nor could even the bleeding mangled remains of the young Prince divert the eyes of Manfred from the portent before him.

All who had known his partial fondness for young Conrad, were as much surprised at their Prince’s insensibility, as thunderstruck themselves at the miracle of the helmet. They conveyed the disfigured corpse into the hall, without receiving the least direction from Manfred. As little was he attentive to the ladies who remained in the chapel. On the contrary, without mentioning the unhappy princesses, his wife and daughter, the first sounds that dropped from Manfred’s lips were, Take care of the Lady Isabella.

The domestics, without observing the singularity of this direction, were guided by their affection to their mistress, to consider it as peculiarly addressed to her situation, and flew to her assistance. They conveyed her to her chamber more dead than alive, and indifferent to all the strange circumstances she heard, except the death of her son.

Matilda, who doted on her mother, smothered her own grief and amazement, and thought of nothing but assisting and comforting her afflicted parent. Isabella, who had been treated by Hippolita like a daughter, and who returned that tenderness with equal duty and affection, was scarce less assiduous about the Princess; at the same time endeavouring to partake and lessen the weight of sorrow which she saw Matilda strove to suppress, for whom she had conceived the warmest sympathy of friendship. Yet her own situation could not help finding its place in her thoughts. She felt no concern for the death of young Conrad, except commiseration; and she was not sorry to be delivered from a marriage which had promised her little felicity, either from her destined bridegroom, or from the severe temper of Manfred, who, though he had distinguished her by great indulgence, had imprinted her mind with terror, from his causeless rigour to such amiable princesses as Hippolita and Matilda.

While the ladies were conveying the wretched mother to her bed, Manfred remained in the court, gazing on the ominous casque, and regardless of the crowd which the strangeness of the event had now assembled around him. The few words he articulated, tended solely to inquiries, whether any man knew from whence it could have come? Nobody could give him the least information. However, as it seemed to be the sole object of his curiosity, it soon became so to the rest of the spectators, whose conjectures were as absurd and improbable, as the catastrophe itself was unprecedented. In the midst of their senseless guesses, a young peasant, whom rumour had drawn thither from a neighbouring village, observed that the miraculous helmet was exactly like that on the figure in black marble of Alfonso the Good, one of their former princes, in the church of St. Nicholas.

Villain! What sayest thou? cried Manfred, starting from his trance in a tempest of rage, and seizing the young man by the collar; how darest thou utter such treason? Thy life shall pay for it.

The spectators, who as little comprehended the cause of the Prince’s fury as all the rest they had seen, were at a loss to unravel this new circumstance. The young peasant himself was still more astonished, not conceiving how he had offended the Prince. Yet recollecting himself, with a mixture of grace and humility, he disengaged himself from Manfred’s grip, and then with an obeisance, which discovered more jealousy of innocence than dismay, he asked, with respect, of what he was guilty? Manfred, more enraged at the vigour, however decently exerted, with which the young man had shaken off his hold, than appeased by his submission, ordered his attendants to seize him, and, if he had not been withheld by his friends whom he had invited to the nuptials, would have poignarded the peasant in their arms.

During this altercation, some of the vulgar spectators had run to the great church, which stood near the castle, and came back open-mouthed, declaring that the helmet was missing from Alfonso’s statue. Manfred, at this news, grew perfectly frantic; and, as if he sought a subject on which to vent the tempest within him, he rushed again on the young peasant, crying -

Villain! Monster! Sorcerer! ’tis thou hast done this! ’tis thou hast slain my son!

The mob, who wanted some object within the scope of their capacities, on whom they might discharge their bewildered reasoning, caught the words from the mouth of their lord, and re-echoed -

Ay, ay; ’tis he, ’tis he: he has stolen the helmet from good Alfonso’s tomb, and dashed out the brains of our young Prince with it, never reflecting how enormous the disproportion was between the marble helmet that had been in the church, and that of steel before their eyes; nor how impossible it was for a youth seemingly not twenty, to wield a piece of armour of so prodigious a weight

The folly of these ejaculations brought Manfred to himself: yet whether provoked at the peasant having observed the resemblance between the two helmets, and thereby led to the farther discovery of the absence of that in the church, or wishing to bury any such rumour under so impertinent a supposition, he gravely pronounced that the young man was certainly a necromancer, and that till the Church could take cognisance of the affair, he would have the Magician, whom they had thus detected, kept prisoner under the helmet itself, which he ordered his attendants to raise, and place the young man under it; declaring he should be kept there without food, with which his own infernal art might furnish him.

It was in vain for the youth to represent against this preposterous sentence: in vain did Manfred’s friends endeavour to divert him from this savage and ill-grounded resolution. The generality were charmed with their lord’s decision, which, to their apprehensions, carried great appearance of justice, as the Magician was to be punished by the very instrument with which he had offended: nor were they struck with the least compunction at the probability of the youth being starved, for they firmly believed that, by his diabolic skill, he could easily supply himself with nutriment.

Manfred thus saw his commands even

Reviews for The Castle of Otranto

[finxy · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

From BadelyngeManfred is having a really bad day. No really, he's having a really, really bad day. It all starts with his son being crushed to death by a gigantic helmet that falls out of the sky. And his day is going to get much worse.The Castle of Otranto was written in 1764 by Horace Walpole. So many times I have heard the name of this book being dropped by literary historians citing its place as the forerunner to the gothic novel, works that would include author's such as Poe, Stoker and Du Maurier. In fact the book is little more than fluff that just happens to contain a castle and a penchant for the romantic, the unlikely and the plain ridiculous.

[deltaqueen50 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I found The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole to be an odd yet entertaining story about a tyrant knight called Manfred, Prince of Otranto, and his family. Considered to be the father of Gothic romance fiction this fantasy is set in the middle ages, and is peopled by characters experiencing strong emotional and psychological distress. The story develops around a supernatural event that occurs at the beginning of the story and causes the death of Manfred’s only son and heir. Unfolding in a castle that comes with underground passages, sealed vaults, and trap doors, my favorite part of the story was when the young Princess Isabella, fearful for her virtue, is running away from Manfred through the dark and haunted castle.In a melodramatic yet playful manner the story has the evil usurper, the noble yet humble rightful heir, two virtuous princesses and a host of other characters running around the Castle of Otranto confronting vanishing giants, pieces of enormous armour, moving artwork and each other.This deceptively simple story deals with issues of inheritance, power and morality and religion. It is important to remember that this novel is the first of its kind and the plot, which appears overworked and familiar today is, indeed, the first of it’s kind and did cause quite a sensation in it’s day.

[jonfaith · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

We are all reptiles, miserable, sinful creatures. It is piety alone that can distinguish us from the dust whence we sprung, and whither we must return.

The Goodreads reviews of this pioneer work are a caravan of groans; how sophisticated we've since become with our forensics and our shape-shfting (very-meta) protagonists. I may shudder and say, whoa, and allow the blush to fade from our consternation. Otranto is ridiculous, sure, but it is damn charming. Anyone ever encountered a contrivance or laughable twist in the Bard or even Nabokov: the car which killed Charlotte Haze dented our credulity, didn't it? I say onward with the GIANT HELMET! What lurks beneath is but prophesy and paternity. Walpole's book offers little in terms of fear. The pacing and revelation are no more haunting than a production of Hamlet. The notion of it being a "found" medieval text gives it sufficient distance to unnerve our sense of legacy.

[xieouyang · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Taken in the context of when it was written, and the fact that it was new to the genre, I can advise that it’s wortwhile reading it. I found it entertaining overall even if it was so,ewhat difficult because of the way dialogue is embeshed within paragraphs- one has to pay continuous attention to follow who is saying what.However, I could not but find many of the passages hilarious, partly because of the extreme situations kn which the characters are placed.

[shereadsnovels · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

When I first opened this book I was confronted by page after page of almost continuous text with virtually no paragraph breaks and no quotation marks or any way of marking when one person stops speaking and the next begins. This made it difficult to follow the dialogue but otherwise the story is easy enough to understand considering it was published in 1764.Manfred, the Prince of Otranto, has arranged a marriage between his fifteen year old son Conrad and the princess Isabella. However, on the day of the wedding Conrad is found crushed to death in the courtyard beneath an enormous black feathered helmet which appears to have fallen from the sky. As his son is obviously now in no position to go ahead with the wedding, Manfred decides to marry Isabella himself...but Isabella has other ideas. Cue a never-ending chain of misunderstandings, coincidences and mayhem.The Castle of Otranto is historically important because it was the first gothic novel - complete with haunted castles, underground tunnels, damsels in distress, knights, ghosts and paintings that move - but don't expect a piece of great literature. In places the plot is so ridiculous and the writing so melodramatic that it's actually hilarious.The Castle of Otranto is funny and entertaining – and very short – but I can't imagine ever wanting to read it again. For a better introduction to gothic fiction I would recommend The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe, which is a longer book but much better written.

[ajbraithwaite_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this as part of research for an essay on The Gothic Novel, so I went back to this as the original example of the genre. I wasn't disappointed: supernatural elements, love triangles, masterful villain, meek heroines and good-looking yet virtuous hero. Truly sensational for its time. Well done, Horace.

[tloeffler_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Described as "one of the first and greatest of Gothic novels." I'm not so sure about the "greatest" part, but it was a good read. On the death of his son, medieval prince Manfred decides to divorce his wife and marry his son's betrothed, Isabella. However, a young peasant intervenes, and when all the surprises and mistaken identities are revealed, the ending, though not a happy one, puts everything in its place. Except, of course, the statue in the church...

[sedelia_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In The Castle of Otranto, Manfred is determined to keep his family in power, which means he needs an heir. When his engaged son dies by being crushed by a statue's helmet, Manfred resolves to marry his son's betrothed, Isabella, and produce heirs so that his family can live on. Understandably, Isabella doesn't want to marry the man who was going to be her father-in-law and leads Manfred on a merry chase throughout the castle and its surrounding area.If you take this book seriously, I'm not sure how enjoyable it is. The supernatural elements are a bit out of sync with the plot itself -- they aren't integrated well into the whole story. The characters are more like caricatures, and the end is quickly tied up into a haphazard bow. I know that if I looked at it as a serious piece of fiction, I would have hated it. Luckily, I found it all a bit funny. Yes, it's an important novel since it's considered the first Gothic novel, and yes, it's a "classic" and deals with themes like family, power, gender stereotypes, etc. But that doesn't mean you have to take the plot seriously, and I certainly didn't.It all started with Conrad being mysteriously crushed by a statue's helmet. Then, bits and pieces of the statue started appearing in the castle for no apparent reason. I just couldn't take it seriously. If you like the overly dramatic, bit of fun Gothic story, I think you'd really enjoy this. It has crazy twists and turns (you can definitely see a Shakespearean influence in this), and without including much character building, internal dialogue or much character self-reflection, the story moves along at a brisk pace. The writing may be a bit hard to understand (it is an eighteenth-century book, after all, and the editors have kept all the weird commas, lack of paragraph breaks, and misspellings), but if you read period lit, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. All in all, fun if you want to see what supposedly started the whole Gothic thing, but not something I'd want to enjoy a glass of wine and relax with.

[jawalter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

[Northanger Abbey]
I think this is my favorite of Austen's works. It lacks any of the great romances that make her so popular amongst filmmakers and book clubs, but it shows off her greatest asset: her intelligence. Austen is, of course, famous for her wit and keen observations of social mores, and those are also put on display in Northanger Abbey. But this is one of the all-time great satires, demonstrating that she was capable of more than merely reproducing the world around her.

This is the book that makes me wonder what Austen would be like if she was alive today. Time and critical reception have pigeon-holed her; she's recognized as a great talent, but I think she's often dismissed as well. She's about more than just female empowerment and laughing at the way people acted in the 1800s. Austen's books are all about how people communicate, and it's still relevant today.

[crypto3willobie · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

What a silly book! My nose hurts from snorting. At first I was thinking "This would be great filmed by Ed Wood." but then I decided it would be more suited to a staging by the Monty Python troupe. It even features a giant foot at one point!

[jkorta_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The book that started the taste for gothic novels in England and later Germany and France, this is by no means the best of the genre but holds pride of place. Replete with ghosts, set in the heart of the dark ages and within the walls of a mood-setting castle, it's no surprise this tale sparked the imaginations of its readers and continues to cast its spell today.

[391_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Let me put it this way...it's decent if you consider the historical aspect of the book (first horror novel, ect.) Otherwise, it's hilariously bad.

[kristelh_15 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A rather short story and the only one published by Horace Walpole tell the story of Manfred, prince of Otranto and the death of his son and only heir Conrad. The castle with its vaults and secret passages make for the setting of a gothic novel. The setting is chivalric Middle Ages and deals with cruelty and tyranny as well as usurping of the castle and title of prince. It’s a very quick and easy read for those working on the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list.

[david.alfred.sarkies · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

To put it blunt, this book is rubbish, and I must admit that my English lecturer, when he spoke on this book, pretty much said just as much. In fact the only reason the English Department included this book on the reading list is because it has the distinction of being the first gothic horror book written. Okay, maybe it is the first, but it really does very little to make it stand out from among all the other books of much higher quality that were written afterwards. Hey, they even had an essay question on it.Anyway, this is a classic example of a child of a very famous person using his father's influence to get rubbish published. I suspect that it happens quite a lot these days as well (Jessica Rudd), though I must admit that even being able to pull strings to get books published does not necessarily mean that anybody will actually read, and then recommend, the book (though that seems not to be the case with Campaign Ruby).You might actually be wondering who Horace Walpole is and what is father did to make him so famous. To be quite honest with you, until I had gone to the lecture on this book, I had never heard of Horace Walpole, or any other Walpoles that he might have been related to, however, if you were living in England in 1764, you certainly would have heard of Robert Walpole, namely because he was, next to the king, the most powerful man in England. In fact, Robert Walpole holds the record for being the longest serving British Prime Minister ever (twenty-one years in total). These days, ten years as Prime Minister is an effort, however unless the country has descended into a one party state, it is highly unlikely, in today's political climate, that anybody could last twenty years (though Robert Menzies did last 16 and Franklin Delanore Roosevelt lasted 13).It was not so much different back then either, though the voting franchise was severely restricted and cabinet appointments were made by the king. Getting elected into parliament, especially if you were a member of the aristocratic class, was not just easy, it was a right. There was no universal franchise, or proper electoral boundaries. In fact, one could live in an electorate (known as a borough) where the only person who could vote was you, so whenever an election came along you would vote for yourself (and why not) and you would automatically get elected. However, politicians didn't get paid back then, which also made it difficult for the lower classes to become politicians).I seem to have written nothing about the book, but then again, it is such rubbish that I personally really don't want to write anything about it. As for the concept of Gothic Horror, in a way it doesn't actually strike any chords in my memory. I guess I do not see any distinction with Gothic Horror. Hell, I can't even define it (not that I really want to) or even has the desire to jump over to Wikipedia to see if they say anything about it. I guess I am simply not interested in determining any definition for the genre. Okay, there are other 'Gothic Horror' books on my read list, however I would probably just put them more into horror than Gothic Horror. If anything, though, thinking over the books and films we explored, I suspect Gothic Horror deals more with concepts of horror (much like what I wrote about in Carrie) rather than a simple slasher flick. Silence of the Lambs is a horror (and a very good horror at that) but it is not a slasher flick. Far from it. However, this book is horror in name only. If I really wanted to categorise it, I would probably put it into a category called rubbish, however, that is what the rating is for.

[jmoncton_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Castle of Otranto is one of those must-read noteworthy books, but heck if I know why. It is listed as the first gothic novel and has those elements of romance and horror. But, I must say, gothic novels have come a looong way. This had many elements that we stereotype and mock - the fair maiden who above all else, must maintain her virtue and the evil villain whose goal in life is to make sure she fails. Ok reading for the historical sense, but not outstanding.

[jbd1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One of my reading goals for 2012 was to read through a few "classics" that I'd never read before. It hasn't gone as well as I'd hoped it would (those darn publishers just keep churning out new books!) but I've been able to enjoy at least of few of the titles I wanted to try. One of those was Walpole's The Castle of Otranto, considered the first gothic novel (Walpole's only novel, it was published in 1764).While to a modern reader some of the gothic tropes (scary castles, mysterious prophecies, portentously-timed thunderclaps, long-lost family members, mistaken identities, religious prejudices, unexplained bumps in the night, &c.) come across as more silly than scary, to readers unfamiliar with such motifs, this must have been quite an unconventional book indeed. It's easy to see how later authors (Radcliffe, Lewis, Brown) were able to develop the stories more thoroughly and create even more disturbing imagery and plot twists. The OUP edition I read contained a very useful introduction by E.J. Clery, contextualizing the work and examining some of the contemporary reaction to it.

[shabacus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It is always difficult to review a book that is considered a classic. On the one hand, you have to discuss how the book was received in its time, what it added to the literature of its day. On the other, you have to balance that with its effect on the modern reader.The fact that "The Caste of Otranto" was successful in its day is undisputed. It is typically held up as the genesis of the Gothic novel, with its dual focus on the supernatural and the effect of the supernatural on human emotion. The realistic, introspective character study is juxtaposed with things that are unrealistic and unbelievable. Although fantastical elements certainly existed before this time in literature, they had not been tackled with a modern sensibility of character. To this book, we owe not only the Gothic stories of Edgar Allen Poe, the Bronte sisters, etc, but also the entirety of modern fantasy.However, as a novel for the modern reader, it fails to grip. It is far too rooted in its past to be much more than a footnote of literature for casual, modern fans of Gothic stories. Characters are shallow by comparison to its descendents The supernatural elements run from mild to goofy to a reader already accustomed to bleeding statues or paintings that come to life.Recommendation: If you approach it as an early example of the genre, you will enjoy it. As a standalone novel, it doesn't have the staying power.

[souloftherose · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I wanted to read a gothic novel to help me better understand what Jane Austen is satirizing in Northanger Abbey. I picked The Castle of Otranto purely because it was the shortest.The book (published in 1764) starts with an introduction from Horace Walpole explaining that this is an English translation he has made of an Italian manuscript dating from 1529; however the introduction makes clear that it's possible that the original work was in fact written much earlier. Walpole also states his belief that the story he has translated is based on truth and events that must have really taken place In fact, none of this was true; it was written in English by Horace Walpole in the 18th century, but at the time it was considered much more worthwhile to read a true story than a fictional one. Interestingly the wikipedia article on the book seems to indicate that the work was critically quite well received until Walpole 'fessed up and admitted he'd made up the whole thing when all the critics promptly decided that it was worthless fluff.Once you're past the introduction this gothic tale kicks off with someone being crushed to death by a giant helmet:"he beheld his child dashed to pieces, and almost buried under an enormous helmet, an hundred times more large than any casque ever made for human being, and shaded with a proportionate quantity of black feathers"Right.All the other gothic staples are included of course; innocent virgins, noble knights, princes in disguise, incest, duels, gloomy castles and ghosts. It was difficult for me to take this book as seriously as I assume the original 18th century readers took it. Most of the scenes which are presumably supposed to be scary seem ridiculous to a modern reader (death by giant helmet being the prime example). There are also a lot of scenes which I think may have been intended to be comic as the introduction notes that 'some persons may perhaps think the characters of the domestics too little serious for the general cast of the story'; there were some wonderful scenes very reminiscent of Shakespeare where the domestics were constantly interrupting each other or wandering from the point to the infuriation of their lords and ladies.Ultimately, this was a short, enjoyable if somewhat strange read. Reading the free kindle version I definitely felt the lack of any explanatory notes to help me put this work in context but I think it was worth reading even so as it's given me a better understanding of Northanger Abbey.

[cherylpeeves · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I'm reading this book right now and it is so cool. Supposedly the first gothic novel ever written. Secret passages, haunted castle, strange happenings, and a damsel in distress. One of the least boring classics I've ever read.

[jstuart_51 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Said by some (like W. S. Lewis) to be the first Gothic novel in English literature, this 1674 novel offers every element now considered to be characteristic of Gothic horror. Here, Walpole set the standard for supernatural armour, furtive friars, family curses, and things that go bump in the castle vaults!

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The evil prince Manfred plots to marry his deceased son's fiancé but is thwarted. This is the ancestor of all gothic novels. Poor prose, but it does move at a steady pace for the 18th Century. Best read for a course requirement. I have no idea of which edition I read in 1971, but the information relates to the current Oxford paperback edition.

[michaeladams1979 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Considered a gothic masterpiece, I found this to be a clever little novel of a crumbling monarchy in it's final days. You can certainly see how it influenced later works of both fantasy and more conventional literature. A number of convoluted machinations, some patent villainy, lots of life-changing revelations, and just a few hints of the supernatural. I honestly could have done with a little less of the domestic implosion of the household and a little more of the fantastical elements, but it is what it is. My one major complaint is the dialogue is not formatted in the modern style of quotation marks and individually indented paragraphs, separated only by commas, periods and dashes, somewhat inconsistently too, making it somewhat tricky to read, though I managed well enough once I found the conversational rhythm in each passage.

[lgandt · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I tried, just could not make hide nor hair of it. I got the jist of the story, but either I just found it simply too boring or missed a crucial element somewhere along the line.Of course I can see how gothic after was inspired by this, but I was expecting something a bit different.I loved the settings but just did not connect with any of the characters.

[cecrow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The original gothic novel, this reads preposterously if you don't know its pedigree. Gigantic elements of armour appear in the story without warning (though they are warnings in themselves), crushing the hapless and frightening other characters who respond as anyone might when faced with such inexplicable events: horror, shock, dismay, fear. It's the meshing of these that brought this novel lasting acclaim, however ridiculous its events now appear to a modern reader. I'm afraid I laughed in a few places I wasn't supposed to, but with a better understanding came a greater appreciation. It's a comfortably short read, and at least an interesting curiosity.

[madepercy-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book must be read in the knowledge that it is more than 250 years old. It is the original Gothic fiction. The story is somewhat gripping, although the dialogue is not punctuated as we would now expect, making you think twice about who is saying what at times. The spectre of the giant knight seems to fade away at the end, almost like the let-down from bad B-grade special effects but in literary form. I felt like every character actually liked to ball their eyes out every few minutes, too. But, taken in context, it is an enjoyable read. Only don't read the introduction and avoid checking the notes at every instance. Like many classic, the introduction, prefaces and notes are now longer than the story itself. It had to be read, and now it is done. If you are a fan of Gothic, then this is like what Evil Dead is to modern horror, or what Sherlock Holmes is to the modern detective story.

[autumnesf · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Crazy story about a giant knights parts showing up in a cursed castle.

[john257hopper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a gem of an early (1764) Gothic novel. There are some moments of genuine horror and a tense drive to the plot. Great stuff and the ending is very downbeat.

[philsyphe · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not the most memorable of novels. It's three years since I read it yet even skimming other people's reviews and the synopsis hasn't jogged my memory!Well, I gave it three stars after finishing the book, so must've liked it, though clearly it's left no impression on me.

[dreesie-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Read on serial reader. A classic early gothic novel, this is very dated. But somehow it is so bad it is kind of good. The mystical is not explained, characters are killed off left and right, and surprises abound.I am not even clear where this is supposed to take place--England, or generic continental Europe?

[ctpress_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A castle and abbey with secret tunnels. A dark landscape, lecherous villains, supernatural visions, a hero with a secret lineage, and beautiful and imperiled women (with a tendency toward the hysterical).What more can you ask for :)As an exploration of the history of literature this “granddaddy” of the gothic novel is interesting and a lot of fun. This is not my favorite genre at all - and the plot is so contrived that you want to laugh - and do laugh a lot of times.This is the kind of literature Catherine Morland loves in Northanger Abbey - as she asks in anticipation of yet another thrilling read: “Is it really horrid?”. Yes, Catherine. It is indeed.