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Considered one (if not “the”) founding work of Gothic fiction, The Castle of Otranto was designed by its British politician author to be a marriage between “the modern novel and ancient romance,” “romance” referring to the chivalric times of knights and damsels in distress of the 1100s to 1200s. This book is not so much eerie and terrifying as more of a historical curiosity, showing how 18th century literati thought of their medieval forebears.

Since I've dived back into reading full force, I'm starting to read more classic books and novels and while this one was a bit hard to follow sometimes, I did love the classic Goth style of it and I really enjoyed the setting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9dMMBbgmgc

Reading this again for class and loving it! A nice, 4 hour read. Although I only had 4 hours total for homework today so I had to speed it up to 2.7x 😅

I‘ve read four books since Monday and I‘m exhausted but having a great time 📚

How beautiful is this folio society copy of The Castle of Otranto!

Purchased because it‘s pretty but reading about it, apparently this is noted as the first gothic novel published in 1764! So interesting!

This was… unexpectedly hilarious? (I'm sure in more ways than intended by the author since the most funny to me were the parts which I think were supposed to be scary 😅)

The ending was a little disappointing, though—throughout the entire thing, I so fervently hoped for a gruesome death for Manfred. We've got one man spectacularly squished to death by a giant helmet—why not continue in this awesome vein? Manfred so deserved it…

3.5/5

This book is an absolute TRIP. It was like an episode of Jersey Shore as far as I wasn‘t able to stop reading because I was like, WHAAAA!? At no point did I have firm footing and I was just swept away for the ride. The idea of a giant helmet getting yeeted onto a groom on his wedding day absolutely sent me. What even is this book!? I can see why people devoured these & also why novel readers had others questioning their sanity…

This book is crazy pants! I really enjoyed it. I love that the big bad is flying armor and I really had no idea what was coming next. So much happens in such a short book! ☠️

#death #scarathlondailyprompts
#teamslaughter

I have a lot to read for my classes this week, so my goals for #OutstandingOctober are: 7 books & 72 hours. Thanks, @Andrew65 for hosting these! 🎃

#teamslaughter #black #ominousoctober #tbr

It's always a good day when you have books arrive in the post. 😀

I'm very excited to read them all! Just got to finish the one I'm on first 😅

#bookhaul #horror #scifi #secondhand

In gothic writing, I love the way setting is a manifestation of the characters' mental states --and can even function as a character. It also fascinates me how dungeons often open out in the end toward the sea...#SavvySettings, #DAy8 #Dungeon @Eggs @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

Listened to this free on audible. I‘ve wanted to read what‘s considered as the first gothic novel for ages. Definitely didn‘t find it scary, it was more hysterical than anything else. I did find it a bit boring but I‘m glad I finally read it

This was my first time reading the “original gothic story”, and I gutta say, I wasn‘t that impressed.

I can see how the genera spawned from it. It is clearly the blue print and showcases all the requirements for a gothic story... but the writing was bland 🤷🏼‍♀️

I found myself zoning out a lot, it was missing the suspense/anticipation aspect. It read more like a soap opera than creepy family drama 🎭

I meant to get to this #GothicHorror novel in October for #Booked2020, but didn‘t until this week. Oh well, that‘s ok, because it was just my type of “horror”, not lots of horror at all! LOL! More like a twisted soap opera, where the real horror comes from some odd visions that scare the servants, and egotistical patriarchs giving the women in their lives spasms as they rearrange their lives at a whim. But for all of that... funny, quick read.

I‘ve been wanting to read this book for a long time as it‘s known as the first ever gothic novel. “According to ancient prophecy, the royal family of Otranto will one day be forced to relinquish control of their kingdom.” This highly melodramatic book about Prince Manfred is not without plot problems, but it is an entertaining story. It‘s like a fantastical, medieval, soap opera. I love gothic stories, so I‘m glad I‘ve now read this classic.

What are you reading on this fine Tuesday afternoon??

After some setbacks, I finished my last read during the #readathon and now get to start on what I'm reading for class. Perks of being an #englishmajor ! #deweyapril

A selection of books I've tagged #ghosts over on LibraryThing. Have tagged the book you can't see. #screamathonphotochallenge @4thhouseontheleft

I started this on #SerialReader but ended up listening to most of it on audio. It's fairly short and considered the first gothic novel. My rating is right on the line of so-so or pick, but overall I enjoyed it. The story is a bit ridiculous starting with a death by giant helmet on the first page, but that is also what makes it fun.

In other news, I upgraded to wireless earbuds this week!

#audiobook #1001books #Reading1001 #TBRTakedown May 2019

I've heard so much about this—"the first gothic novel"—that I finally had to read it. Like the best kind of soap opera, it's absolutely ridiculous & I enjoyed it. There's nothing remotely scary; it's fantastic, & written in the tradition of a medieval romance slash supernatural tale. What's gruesome is the patriarchal power at play here. Manfred has some Trump in him. The giant hand in armour, though, made me think of Thanos. Lmao. #serialreader

The Castle of Otranto is notable for a few reasons: 1) it is considered one of the first pieces of gothic literature, 2) it constituted a literary hoax, in which the author, Horace Walpole, claimed to have translated an ancient text which he in fact authored himself; when he came clean, Otranto‘s fans became its critics, and last but not least, 3) a man dies on his wedding day after a giant helmet falls out of the sky and crushes him. 5/10

A blog post by Sylvia Davoli of Strawberry Hill House about her hunt for this portrait of Henry Cary, Lord Falkland, commissioned by Walpole and said to be the inspiration for the scene in Otranto when a painting of one of Lord Manfred's ancestors comes to life and steps from its frame. An inspiration for other ghostly tales ever since 👻
http://www.strawberryhillhouse.org.uk/the-mystery-of-the-painting-that-inspired-...

It‘s supposed to be the first gothic novel written. I couldn‘t get over how ridiculously either good or bad all the characters were and how funny some of the events were. Not sure if it‘s supposed to be ridiculous, but it was

We saw a bookstore yesterday when Husband‘s uncles took us on a tour of the small town in Indiana where his dad grew up. Today, he asked to borrow the car and take me. 💜😍📚 I showed admirable restraint and only bought three books.

“Since hell will not satisfy my curiosity” 😆

Less horrifying today than it would have seemed at first publication, but still full of atmosphere, mystery, the supernatural, intrigue, romance, and humour. The last is, perhaps, the most surprising now, as it clearly was then, as Walpole takes the opportunity in his preface to the second edition to defend his artistic decision to leaven the macabre with comedy. 👇🏻👇🏻

I learnt a new colour today: Watchet:

"I was going by his highness's order to my lady Isabella's chamber; she lies in the watchet-coloured chamber..."

“A bystander often sees more of the game than those that play.”

"Manfred was not one of those savage tyrants who wanton in cruelty unprovoked. The circumstances of his fortune had given an asperity to his temper, which was naturally humane; and his virtues were always ready to operate when his passion did not obscure his reason."

Despite being the exemplar of the Gothic villain, Prince Manfred is far from being a one-dimensional, stock cardboard character. I do appreciate Walpole's sensitivity for personality

"The gothic novel can thrive wherever the imagination seeks to explore man's subterranean turmoils."

- Devandra P. Varma

Starting on my Folio Edition of The Castle of Otranto. The picture is of Strawberry Hill House, which author Horace Walpole built, setting the fashion for the Gothic style in architecture, just as he did in literature with "Otranto". The house has fairly recently reopened to the public and I'd love to visit it.

The helmet! The helmet!
Shocked with these lamentable sounds, and dreading he knew not what, he advanced hastily...

So, finally, I've got my hands on a Folio edition of Walpole's "Castle of Otranto", the original Gothic novel. I'd almost given up hope and was contemplating ordering a copy off the internet, but how much more satisfying to find it on the bookseller's shelf! I've already read the novel in a Gothic anthology, but pleased to have it in a separate volume. It has some fanatically atmospheric, '70s-era illustrations, too. ?❤

When your cat spends her night knocking books off the bookshelf. 😼

This was a difficult read due to high language (was written in the 18th Century and was to have taken place after the Crusades). It is said to be the first Gothic novel. Dark castle, check. Creepy father-in-law , check. A princess hiding in tunnels, check. I feel having accomplished something just by getting through this one.

I've always been curious about this one, being considered the first-ever Gothic novel! Has anyone read it? Is it worth the read?

#ReadingResolutions #Castle
@Jess7

Dense writing and uninteresting story. Would have bailed if I had the option. #unibooks #gothic

Even though I don‘t go back to uni until the end of feb, I‘m trying to get a jump start on some of the books I have to read for my #gothicfiction course. Gothic fiction is definitely not my favourite genre but this is as the only course that I could fit in next semester. Excited to read more Poe and Arthur Conan Doyle but I think the others may give me some hard reading ahead.

I read The Castle of Otranto in ltalian when l was a kid and l wanted to read all the classics of fantasy. Didn't particularly like it back then.
But now l have the possibility to get this English edition for only a few euro and there's no way l'm not snatching it!

I‘m at a murder dinner...the setting is Regency England....there are GHOSTS!!

#TBRtemptation post 1! First published in 1764, it was purported to be a translation of an Italian story from the time of the Crusades. It was an attempt to blend ancient and modern romances, and the book was an immediate hit. Walpole's considered the granddaddy of Gothic literature, and Otranto's ending would directly influence Edgar Allan Poe and "The Fall of the House of Usher". #blameLitsy #blameMrBook ?

Finally finished. I had slept more than I have read but I hope I‘ll read more in April and HOPE NOTHING WILL STOP ME FROM INDULGING IN BOOKS.
#readathon

Good morning all, it‘s time for reading.
#readathon @DeweysReadathon

Me: "I will not buy any books until we close on the house."
BookDepository.com: "Here's a 10% off coupon."
Me: "...dammit."
I don't think anyone believed I would last on my book buying ban. My coworkers were not surprised. I did get The Castle of Otranto for $7 instead of $16, and it's the lovely Penguin Classics edition.

The first gothic novel ever. With that in mind I was able to read and finish the book. It is mixture of absurd horror scenes and hysteric dialogues, which made me laugh instead of shiver. Fun read! #1001books

@lemonlime799 Here's Morrigan, on top of her castle.

I've read most of the classics that I own/collect, but these are part of the #classicsTBR #junebookbugs @RealLifeReading

A very strange, almost whimsical read.