Horace Walpole

On the day of his wedding, Conrad, heir to the house of Otranto, is killed in mysterious circumstances. His calculating father, Manfred, fears that his dynasty will now come to an end and determines to marry his son's bride himself, despite the fact he is already married. But a series of terrifying supernatural omens soon threaten this unlawful union, as...

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...

The newest addition to the highly acclaimed Haunted Library of Horror Classics series—something haunts this castle, and it won't stop until justice is served... Manfred, the lord of The Castle of Otranto, has long lived in dread of an ancient prophecy—it's foretold that when his family line ends, the true owner of the castle will appear and claim it. In...

Look, my lord! See heaven itself declares against your impious intentions! The Castle of Otranto (1764) is the first supernatural English novel and one of the most influential works of Gothic fiction. It inaugurated a literary genre that will be forever associated with the effects that Walpole pioneered. Professing to be a translation of a mysterious Italian tale from the...