The Castle of Otranto

Name: The Castle of Otranto
Brand: Naxos
Availability: InStock
Author: Horace Walpole
ISBN: 9789629545796

Author: Horace Walpole

Narrator: Neville Jason

Abridged: 2 hr 33 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Naxos

Published: 05/01/2006

Categories: Fiction, Classic

Synopsis

The Castle of Otranto is regarded as the first Gothic novel. The son of Manfred, Prince of Otranto, is mysteriously killed on his wedding day by a huge helmet. The event leads to a fast-paced story of jealous passion, intrigue, murder and supernatural phenomena unfolding in an atmosphere of thunderclaps, moonlight, and dark castle walls – mirroring the inner turmoils of the characters themselves. Horace Walpole’s tale, an immediate success when it first appeared in 1764, is a classic of its genre.

About Horace Walpole

Horace Walpole (1717–1797), was educated at Eton and King’s College, Cambridge, and then spent several years in politics. In 1757, he established a private printing press at Strawberry Hill, his home in Twickenham. There he published his own works as well as those of other authors. Upon his death, he held the title of Earl of Oxford.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Alex on February 15, 2024

3.5 stars......more

Goodreads review by Shawn on November 04, 2014

Two classic Gothic Novels and a short. THE CASTLE OF OTRANTO is regarded as the first Gothic novel and has probably been pored over by bored students everywhere in every semester that passes by on God's green earth. Much has been said about it, by much better brains than mine, so I thought I'd reserv......more

Goodreads review by Ashley on January 23, 2014

Vathek was by far the best novella out of the three.......more

Goodreads review by Chris on December 26, 2018

John Polidori: The Vampyre: a Tale (1819) and a Fragment of a Novel by Lord Byron (1816) in Three Gothic Novels (edited by E F Bleiler) Dover 1966 Buttressed by an editor's introduction, the author's own introduction, an extract from a later letter to Polidori's publisher, and Byron's original vampi......more

Goodreads review by K. on March 08, 2024

This is an interesting anthology of three of the first Gothic Novels ever published. (‘The Castle’ is considered the very first in this genre.) It was a great start my quest to explore Gothic literature and develop my understanding, and indeed writing, in this genre. I will happily return to these t......more