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The Gothic novel, which flourished from about 1765 until 1825, revels in the horrible and the supernatural, in suspense and exotic settings. This volume, with its erudite introduction by Mario Praz, presents three of the most celebrated Gothic novels: The Castle of Otranto, published pseudonymously in 1765, is one of the first of the genre and the most truly Gothic of the three. Vathek (1786), an oriental tale by an eccentric millionaire, exotically combines Gothic romanticism with the vivacity of The Arabian Nights and is a narrative tour de force. The story of Frankenstein (1818) and the monster he created is as spine-chilling today as it ever was; as in all Gothic novels, horror is the keynote.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

The "Three Gothic Novels" in this collection are: The Castle of Otranto, Vathek, and Frankenstein. 2 out of the 3 are rereads. Vathek was new to me. I did not find it as interesting as other novels in this collection, but it does represent the exoticism and demonism that is also part of the Gothic (e.g. The Monk). Overall, it seemed overlong. Both the Castle of Otranto and Frankenstein were refreshing to reread. Though Otranto comes across as almost naive in its horror -- it had some funny scenes with the servants, and wonderful atmosphere. I don't remember when I last read Frankenstein, but this time around I had many more questions about Frankenstein's work. He travels to England and other places to do "research" for the creation of the monster's mate. As I understood it before, the monster was made of parts of corpses -- so is Frankenstein carrying parts of corpses all over Europe as he does his "research"? Or were these creatures actually mechanical creations endowed somehow with life? It's not entirely clear. I can't really pity Frankenstein as he brought much of the destruction on himself, both by abandoning the monster at birth, and then by ignoring the monster's warnings. ( )

I will finish reading all three of the novels covered in here, but until then I will review them as I read them.

I read The Castle of Otranto on a short plane flight on 30 April 2009. It was difficult to read, not because of the vocabulary particularly, but because of the way it is laid out. No quotation marks, despite the presence of direct speech, and the paragraphs went on for pages at a time. The characters seemed exaggerated and stereotyped, and the more virtuous ones were annoyingly stupid, the over virtuous Hippolyta in particular. The story of the rapacious ruler wanting to get rid of an old and barren Queen to make way for a young girl might have got Horace Walpole into trouble a couple of centuries earlier too.

A couple of the characters were not what they seemed at first, and the ending is a surprise, so this short novel is not a total waste of space. Walpole's posthumous reputation, at least among the very few academics who study these things, will probably survive my critical onslaught, but I honestly could not recommend this to anyone except as an esoteric and quaint curiosity. ( )

This is a fantastic collection of 3 novels which greatly impacted (or created) the Gothic genre, but which are also important in their own rights.

Walpole's novel The Castle of Otranto is arguably the first Gothic novel. It is a parody of the Romance genre, written before "novel" became a common part of English vocabulary. It definitely sets a standard of conventions that later Gothic novels follow: a medieval Catholic setting, contrast of science and superstition, winding passages, confined female, &c.
Penguin attempted to present Otranto as accurately as possible, therefore there are no quotation marks to indicate dialogue, nor are there very many paragraph or line breaks. This makes it difficult for the modern reader at first, but it is worth working through to read the very funny story.

Because, yes, Otranto is a funny novel which parodies many elements of the romances popular in the 18th century, as well as containing humourous wordplay. The image of a giant helmet crashing out of the sky and killing a bridegroom on his way to the wedding is just one of many humourous incidents in the book.

Vathek is a translation from the French and an example of the combination of foreign horror with Walpole's British Gothic. It played a strong influence for Percy Bysshe Shelley's work, seen as early as the novel Zastrozzi.

Of course, nearly everyone is probably familiar with Frankenstein (itself heavily edited by Percy Shelley), which is probably one of the greatest Gothic novels. Its themes are numerous and I've found that each time I read it (and I've done so several times for different courses), there's always something new to discover, whether it's a philosophical thread echoing Rousseau, or a literary technique previously unappreciated.

This is a fantastic addition to my personal library and a great choice for those interested in the Gothic. The only better introduction I could think of would be Four Gothic Novels, and only then because it also includes Mathew Lewis's The Monk, my favorite of all Gothic novels. ( )

Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

The accidental death of Manfred's, a tyrannt, son on his wedding day spirals into the dark family secrets. Putatively to be the first gothic novel, it is disappointing. The plot is just insane and doesn't and won't make sense.

Rating: 1.5 stars

Vathek by William Beckford

A better title would be Beckford on Drugs or Inversion of the Temptation of Satan. Goaded by his evil mother, Vathek, an Arabic king, makes a deal with the devil for riches despite the several warnings from God. (Like hello, you are the damn king and already have so much gold and you want more?!) There are no chapters so this book has a dreamlike, stream of consciousness quality to it. The writing is quite fine and in excess, which is the point of the story. (Oscar Wilde may probably have read this as I can see its influence on Picture of Dorian Gray.) I like how Beckford is rewriting an inversion of the temptation of Christ but like Otranto, the narrative is just silly.

Rating: 2.5 stars

Frankenstein

Rating: 4 stars

Average: 2.5 stars ( )