Chris Baldick is a literary historian and critic who edited The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales. He specializes in the history of horror and dark fiction, providing readers with essential context for these genres. His work
The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales

The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales
+33 more
2001 · 533 pages · Oxford University Press
Synopsis
Explore the dark and unsettling corners of human nature with this collection of classic Gothic tales. From the earliest whispers of the genre to chilling stories from the 20th century, "The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales" presents a curated selection of narratives that explore fear, madness, and the macabre. Discover tales of haunted castles, vengeful spirits, and psychological dread that have shaped the Gothic tradition.
- Avg. reading time
- 10h 6m
- Prose complexity
- 7/10
Vibe
TraumaViolence
Authors
Anna Laetitia Aiken was an English author who helped define the early Gothic tradition. Her writing is featured in The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales and includes a variety of poems and essays from the
Richard Cumberland was an English dramatist and novelist known for his early contributions to Gothic fiction. His work is featured in The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales, showcasing his role in the development of the genre.
Juvenis is the author of The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales, a collection that tracks the history of dark and eerie fiction. Their work focuses on the development of the gothic genre through various short stories and
Isaac Crookenden was an early nineteenth-century writer who specialized in short Gothic fiction and popular bluebooks. His stories of suspense and the supernatural are featured in collections like The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales. He
Petrus Borel is the author of the classic adventure novel Robinson Crusoe. This enduring story of survival and resourcefulness continues to be a favorite for readers of all ages.
John Wadham is an editor and writer best known for compiling The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales. He specializes in the history of dark fiction and the evolution of the gothic genre. His
Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction.[1] He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in...
Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu (28 August 1814 – 7 February 1873), best known as Sheridan Le Fanu, was an Irish writer of Gothic tales, mystery novels, and horror fiction. He was a leading ghost story writer of the nineteenth century and was central to the development of the genre in the Victorian era. M. R. James described Le Fanu as "absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories". Three of his best-known works are Uncle Silas, Carmilla, and The House by the Churchyard. **S...
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer. Nathaniel Hawthorne was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of American literature for his tales of the nation's colonial history. Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged...
Bret Harte is the author behind Prentice Hall Literature--Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes--The American Experience. His work focuses on American literature, offering readers a look into classic themes and voices.
George Washington Cable was a writer known for his stories of Creole life in New Orleans. His work, including selections found in The Scribner Treasury, offers a vivid look at the region's culture and society.
Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as Treasure Island, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Kidnapped and A Child's Garden of Verses.
Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet of the naturalist movement, although in several poems he displays elements of the previous romantic and enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural. While he regarded himself primarily as a poet who composed novels mainly for financial gain, during his lifetime he was much better known for his novels, such as Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Far from the Madding Crowd, which earned him a reputation as a grea...
Marcel Schwob was a French writer who created short stories blending historical detail with dark, imaginative fiction. His work is featured in The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales and influenced many later authors of the strange and mac
Charlotte Perkins Stetson was a social reformer and writer whose work appears in The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales. She is best known for her short story The Yellow Wallpaper, which examines the mental health and
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle KStJ, DL (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a Scottish writer and physician, most noted for creating the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes and writing stories about him which are generally considered milestones in the field of crime fiction. He is also known for writing the fictional adventures of a second character he invented, Professor Challenger, and for popularising the mystery of the Mary Celeste. He was a prolific writer whose other works include fantasy...
Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland) was an English author and poet; she published her books for children under the name of E. Nesbit.
Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce was an American editorialist, journalist, short story writer, fabulist, and satirist.
Ellen Anderson Gholson Glasgow is the author behind the intriguing collections Asimov's Ghosts and Asimov's Monsters, featuring 24 stories that explore the darker, more unsettling corners of science fiction. Her work offers a chilling look at what lurks within the imagination.
Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Lovecraft spent most of his life in New England. After his father's institutionalization in 1893, he lived affluently until his family's wealth dissipated after the death of his grandfather. He then lived with his mother, in reduced financial security, until her institutionalization in 1919. He began to write essays for the United Amateur Press Association, and in 1913 wrote a critical letter to a pulp magazine that ultimately led to his involvement in pulp fi...
William Faulkner was a Nobel Prize-winning American author. One of the most influential writers of the 20th century, his reputation is based on his novels, novellas and short stories. He was also a published poet and an occasional screenwriter. ([Source][1].) [1]:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Faulkner
Clark Ashton Smith (January 13, 1893 – August 14, 1961) was an American writer and artist. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne. As a poet, Smith is grouped with the West Coast Romantics alongside Joaquin Miller, Sterling, and Nora May French and remembered as "The Last of the Great Romantics" and "The Bard of Auburn". Smith's work was praised by his contemporaries. H. P. Lovecraft stated that "in s...
Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) wrote works both in Danish and in English. She is best known, at least in English, for Out of Africa, her account of living in Kenya, and one of her stories, Babette's Feast, both of which have been adapted into highly acclaimed, Academy Award-winning motion pictures. In Denmark she is best known for her works Out of Africa (Danish Den afrikanske Farm) and Seven Gothic Tales (Danish Syv fantastiske Fortællinger; from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Blixen).
F.M. Mayor was an English novelist and short story writer whose work appears in The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales. She is best known for her 1924 novel The Rector
Frederick Ignatius Cowles was born in Cambridge at the turn of the twentieth century and spent his early working life as a librarian at the city's Trinity College. In the course of his duties at the library Cowles met the famous antiquarian and ghost story author, M. R. James, whose work was to exert a strong influence on his own. Cowles left Cambridge to become librarian of Swinton and Pendlebury Library in Lancashire and it was there in 1931 that he began writing ghost stories for the library...
Eudora Welty's work is featured in Prentice Hall Literature--Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes--The American Experience, offering readers a look into classic American literature. She's a writer whose selections are a great addition to any literary exploration.
Ray Russell is the author behind Microcosmic Tales, a collection that explores the small wonders of life. His writing often plays with the everyday, finding the extraordinary in the ordinary.
Alejandra Pizarnik was an Argentinian poet whose work often explored themes of solitude and the night. Her collection Poesía portátil en femenino offers a glimpse into her unique voice.
Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges (Buenos Aires, 24 de agosto de 1899 - Ginebra, 14 de junio de 1986), más conocido como Jorge Luis Borges, fue un destacado escritor de cuentos, poemas y ensayos argentino, extensamente considerado una figura clave tanto para la literatura en habla hispana como para la literatura universal. También fue bibliotecario, profesor, conferencista y traductor. Sus dos libros más conocidos, Ficciones y El Aleph, publicados en los años cuarenta, son recopilaciones d...
Angela Carter was a master of dark fairy tales and gothic fiction. Her collection The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories is a must-read for anyone who loves a story with a sharp edge.
Joyce Carol Oates is the author of Prentice Hall Literature--Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes--The American Experience. Her work often explores the American experience.
Patrick McGrath is a writer of psychological horror and a key figure in modern Gothic fiction. He edited The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales and contributed to the anthology I Shudder at Your Touch. His stories focus on dark themes and the inner workings of the human mind.
Isabel Angélica Allende Llona (Lima, Perú; 2 de agosto de 1942) es una escritora chilena con nacionalidad estadounidense, de ascendencia hispano-portuguesa y nacida en Perú. Desde 2004 es miembro de la Academia Estadounidense de las Artes y las Letras. Obtuvo el Premio Nacional de Literatura de su país en 2010. La venta total de sus libros alcanza 73 millones de ejemplares y sus obras han sido traducidas a 42 idiomas. Es considerada como la escritora viva más leída del mundo de la lengua españo...
Genres
Characters
Emily GriersonProtagonist
Sherlock HolmesCameo
Dr. John H. WatsonCameo
Subjects
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Edition
The Oxford Book of Gothic TalesPaperback, 2009
533 pages
Oxford University PressLanguage: EnglishISBN: 9780199561537Reissued (3)4 editions available






























