Hooray! You have added the first book to your bookshelf. Check it out now!
[−]
  • Search Digit-count Valid ISBN Invalid ISBN Valid Barcode Invalid Barcode
Add an image Blog this item

The Castle of Otranto

(Classic Fiction)

By Horace Walpole

(85)

| Audio CD | 9789626340349

Like The Castle of Otranto?
Join aNobii to see if your friends read it, and discover similar books!

Sign up for free

Book Description

On the day of his wedding, Conrad, heir to the house of Otranto, is killed in mysterious circumstances. Fearing the end of his dynasty, his father, Manfred, determines to marry Conrad's betrothed, Isabella, until a series of supernatural events stands in his way. . . .

Set in the time of thContinue

On the day of his wedding, Conrad, heir to the house of Otranto, is killed in mysterious circumstances. Fearing the end of his dynasty, his father, Manfred, determines to marry Conrad's betrothed, Isabella, until a series of supernatural events stands in his way. . . .

Set in the time of the crusades, The Castle of Otranto (1764) established the Gothic as a literary form in England. With its compelling blend of psychological realism and supernatural terror, guilty secrets and unlawful desires, it has influenced a literary tradition stretching from Ann Radcliffe and Bram Stoker to Daphne Du Maurier and Stephen King.

This Penguin Classics edition includes a full selection of early responses to the novel, as well as a critical introduction, chronology of Walpole's life and works, suggestions for further reading, and full explanatory notes.

"[Walpole] is the father of the first romance and surely worthy of a higher place than any living writer." (Lord Byron)

Critics

  • The Castle of Otranto, by Horace Walpole

    Home Contact us Posts Comments The Castle of Otranto is gothic, romantic, terrifying, and unbelievably over the top. It is one of those books that seems to exist beyond its pages because of the influence it has had on the literature that followed. It ... (read full critics)

    bookgeeks published on Fri, 24 Sep 2010

  • The extraordinary resurgence of Jules Verne

    Few people some 20 years ago, near the start of the administration of George Bush Sr. — when cyberpunk was still a fresh notion, when there existed only three "Star Wars" films, all good, and when the word "steampunk" had only just been coined — woul ... (read full critics)

    salon published on Wed, 15 Sep 2010

2 Reviews

Login or Sign Up to write a review

  • 1 person find this helpful

    An unexpectedly uninteresting Gothic tale

    Walpole keeps the promise he makes in his preface: «[...] no bombast, no similies, flowers, digressions, or unnecessary descriptions. Every thing tends directly to the catastrophe.» Yet, a relentless rhythm is of no use if the events rapidly succeeding are dull and insipid (the story starts off with ... (continue)

    Walpole keeps the promise he makes in his preface: «[...] no bombast, no similies, flowers, digressions, or unnecessary descriptions. Every thing tends directly to the catastrophe.» Yet, a relentless rhythm is of no use if the events rapidly succeeding are dull and insipid (the story starts off with, of all possible things, the materialisation of a giant helmet in a courtyard, and it doesn't really get any better), and no atmospherics are built to redeem them.<br />All that is left for the modern reader to appreciate is its seminal status, which, however, can hardly stir the indifference the narration inspires.

    Is this helpful?

    landsend said on Aug 22, 2007 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

  • Pathetic.
    I've read that this could be considered the first Gothic novel ever written. Whoever said so forgot to mention how senseless and boring and cheap this novel truly is.

    Is this helpful?

    Matteo F. said on Aug 29, 2011 about the Paperback edition | Add your feedback

Book Details

Improve data of this book

Groups with this in collection

Prices Change currency & sellers

ISBN Edition List Sale Seller
9789626340349 Audio CD $15.98 $16.88 The Book Depository
Other editions →
+ 2 copies tradable: →
Added to Shelf Added to Wish List

Inline Translation Mode

Left click to navigate, right click to translate.

inline translation guide

or close

Inline translation is not ready for this page yet.

Inline translation mode.

Share this page with your friends.

The viewport has not loaded.