The Castle of Otranto, 1764
Author: Horace Walpole, 1717-1797
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The Castle of Otranto by Publication Date: 1764Conrad, the son of Manfred, Prince of Otranto, is crushed to death by an enormous helmet on the morning of his wedding to the beautiful princess Isabella. Faced with the extinction of his line, Manfred vows to divorce his wife and marry the terrified Isabella himself.
The Old English Baron: A Gothic Story, 1777
Author: Clara Reeve, 1729-1807
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The Old English Baron: A Gothic Story by Publication Date: 1777Sir Philip Harclay returns to medieval England to find that his friend, Arthur, Lord Lovel, is dead. His cousin Walter, Lord Lovel, had succeeded to the estate and sold the family castle to the Baron Fitz-Owen.
The Recess, or a Tale of Other Times, 1783–85
Author: Sophia Lee, 1750-1824
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The Recess, or A Tale of Other Times by
Publication Date: 1783-85Set during the reign of Elizabeth I, the novel is narrated by twin daughters of Mary, Queen of Scots, by a secret marriage.
Vathek, 1786
Author: William Beckford, 1760-1844
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Vathek by Publication Date: 1786Vathek is one of the earliest and most influential Gothic novels. Its hero is the Caliph Vathek who renounces Islam in a hedonistic quest for supernatural powers, which leads to his downfall.
Ethelinde, or The Recluse of the Lake, 1789
Author: Charlotte Smith, 1749-1806
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Ethelinde, or The Recluse of the Lake by
Publication Date: 1789Ethelinde is the story of the trials and tribulations of the lovely orphan Ethelinde, beloved both by the brave but impecunious Montgomery and by her guardian, the unhappily married Sir Edward Newenden, and pursued by the villainous schemes of the rake Davenant.
The Mysteries of Udolpho, 1794; A Sicilian Romance, 1790; The Romance of the Forest, 1791; & The Italian, 1797
Ann Radcliffe, 1764-1823
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A Sicilian Romance by Publication Date: 1790Concerns the fallen nobility of the Sicilian house of Mazzini as related by a tourist who learns of their turbulent history from a monk he meets at the ruins of their once-magnificent castle.
The Romance of the Forest by Publication Date: 1791After being abandoned by the man she believes to be her father, Adeline St. Pierre finds precarious refuge with Pierre de la Motte and his family.
The Mysteries of Udolpho by Publication Date: 1794Tells the story of orphan Emily St. Aubert, who finds herself separated from the man she loves and confined within the medieval castle of her aunt's new husband, Montoni.
The Italian; or, The Confessional of the Black Penitents; A Romance by Publication Date: 1797Ellena Rosalba and Vincentio di Vivaldi first meet in Naples, but their love is ill-omened. Leagued against them are the proud and ambitious Marchese di Vivaldi and her confessor the sinister Father Schedoni.
Things as They Are; or, The Adventures of Caleb Williams, 1794
Author: William Godwin, 1756-1836
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Things as They Are; or, The Adventures of Caleb Williams by Publication Date: 1794Caleb Williams, secretary for Squire Falkland, begins to suspect that his master is hiding a secret. Caleb's discovery of the truth results in calamity as the Squire enacts a cruel revenge.
The Monk, 1796
Matthew Gregory Lewis, 1775-1818
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The Monk: A Romance by Publication Date: 1796Tale of a Capuchin superior who succumbs first to temptations offered by a young girl disguised as a boy and continues his diabolical descent with increasingly depraved acts of sorcery, murder, incest, and torture.
A Gossip's Story, and A Legendary Tale, 1796
Author: Jane West, 1758-1852
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A Gossip's Story, and A Legendary Tale by Publication Date: 1796The story centers on two very different sisters. Where Louisa proves herself to be rational and full of good sense, Marianne is driven by her emotions and romantic idealism, and their dispositions lead them to starkly different fates.
The Midnight Bell, 1798; The Impenetrable Secret, 1805 & The Fatal Vow, 1807
Author: Francis Lathom, 1774-1832
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The Midnight Bell: A German Story by Publication Date: 1798Young Alphonsus Cohenburg enters his mother's bedroom and finds her covered in blood. She tells him his uncle has murdered his father, and orders him to flee Cohenburg castle forever to save his own life. Considered one of the greatest of all Gothic novels, it is now available online.
The Impenetrable Secret, Find it Out! by Publication Date: 1805Averilla del Alvaretti is set to marry the Conte della Piacca, forced into the union by her unfeeling uncle, when she meets the handsome Sylvio di Rosalva and falls in love with him. But Sylvio's behaviour and origins are mysterious, and despite his professions of love, he abruptly breaks off the connection, sending Averilla a mortifying letter saying he never loved her.The Fatal Vow; or, St. Michael's Monastery by
Publication Date: 1807After a falling-out with his father, Reginald de Brune travels to St. Michael's Monastery for a short stay. There, one night at midnight, he observes a beautiful young woman, Christabelle, swearing a mysterious vow at the altar. The two quickly fall in love, but Christabelle's father has other plans, deciding to immure her in a convent, where she is terrorized by a cruel abbess.
Castle Rackrent, 1800 & Ennui, 1809
Author: Maria Edgeworth, 1767-1849
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Castle Rackrent; an Hibernian tale by
Publication Date: 1800Thady Quirk, steward to the decaying estate of the Rackrent family, narrates a story of four generations of a dying dynasty in Castle Rackrent.
Ennui; or, Memoirs of the Earl of Glenthorn by Publication Date: 1809Presents the entertaining confessions of the Earl of Glenthorn, a bored aristocrat.
Zastrozzi, 1810 & St. Irvyne, 1811
Author: Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1792-1822
Below are the Gothic titles by ths author. See the supplementary material for more information about Percy Bysshe Shelley's life and work, including biography and context, literary criticism, and searchable online texts.
Zastrozzi: A Romance by Publication Date: 1810Tells tells the story of an amoral and charismatic criminal mastermind and master sword fighter who cuts a swath of destruction across Europe in the 19th century.St. Irvyne; or, The Rosicrucian by
Publication Date: 1811Wolfstein, a solitary wanderer, encounters Ginotti, an alchemist of the Rosicrucian or Rose Cross Order who seeks to impart the secret of immortality.
Glenarvon, 1816
Author: Caroline Lamb, 1785-1828
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Glenarvon by Publication Date: 1816Gothic novel featuring a thinly disguised depiction of the author and her former lover, Lord Byron, who is painted as a war hero who turns traitor against Irish nationalism.
Northanger Abbey, 1818
Author: Jane Austen, 1775-1817
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Northanger Abbey by Publication Date: 1818, posthumousCatherine Morland, who has a passion for macabre Gothic novels, experiences intrigue, adventure, and romance, in this Gothic satire.
Frankenstein, 1818; revised 1831
Author: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, 1797-1851
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Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Publication Date: 1818A monster assembled by a scientist from parts of dead bodies develops a mind of his own as he learns to loathe himself and hate his creator.
Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus: revised, corrected, and illustrated with a new introduction, by the author by Publication Date: 1831Includes Mary Shelley's "account of the origin of the story."
Nightmare Abbey, 1818
Author: Thomas Love Peacock, 1785-1866
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Nightmare Abbey by Publication Date: 1818Gothic satire that follows the fortunes of Christopher Glowry, Esquire, a morose widower who lives with his only son Scythrop in his semi-dilapidated family mansion Nightmare Abbey.
The Vampyre; A Tale, 1819
Author: John William Polidori, 1795-1821
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The Vampyre; A Tale by Publication Date: 1819"The story deals with aristocratic seduction and murder, the connection between a depraved young aristocrat and vampirism, the moral collapse both of the woman being seduced and her brother, and the inability of her family to protect her."
Melmoth the Wanderer, 1820
Author: Charles Robert Maturin, 1782-1824
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Melmoth the Wanderer by Publication Date: 1820The story of Melmoth, who, in exchange for immortality, has sold his soul in a satanic bargain and now preys on the helpless in their darkest moments.
The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner, 1824
Author: James Hogg, 1770-1835
Below are the Gothic titles by this author. See the supplementary material for more information about James Hogg's life and work, including biography and context, literary criticism, and searchable online texts.
The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner by Publication Date: 1824Follows a young man who, falling under the spell of a mysterious stranger who bears an uncanny likeness to himself, embarks on a career as a serial murderer.