Ann Radcliffe (1764 - 1823) was an English author and pioneer of the Gothic novel. Her style is Romantic in its vivid descriptions of landscapes and long travel scenes, yet the Gothic element is obvious through her use of the supernatural. It was her technique, "the explained supernatural" as the final revelation of inexplicable phenomena, which helped the Gothic novel achieve respectability in the 1790s. The Mysteries of Udolpho is a quintessential Gothic romance, replete with incidents of physical and psychological terror ...
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Ann Radcliffe (1764 - 1823) was an English author and pioneer of the Gothic novel. Her style is Romantic in its vivid descriptions of landscapes and long travel scenes, yet the Gothic element is obvious through her use of the supernatural. It was her technique, "the explained supernatural" as the final revelation of inexplicable phenomena, which helped the Gothic novel achieve respectability in the 1790s. The Mysteries of Udolpho is a quintessential Gothic romance, replete with incidents of physical and psychological terror; remote, crumbling castles; seemingly supernatural events; a brooding, scheming villain; and a persecuted heroine.
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Add this copy of The Mysteries of Udolpho to cart. $21.08, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2016 by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.
Add this copy of The Mysteries of Udolpho to cart. $41.48, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2016 by CreateSpace Independent Publis.
As a fan of Jane Austen, I've enjoyed Northanger Abbey and had wondered about all the Udolpho references. I was unable to force myself to continue reading it after page 400 something. I found the prose lovely for the first three or four pages and after that very repetitious.
For my taste there was not enough action to balance the description. I also had a problem with not really caring about any of the characters, except perhaps the French maid. The heroine's propensity to faint when the going got tough was perhaps what was expected of genteel young women of the time, but I found it extremely irritating.
If one were on a desert island and it was the only book available, I'd say read this book. Otherwise, I could not honestly recommend it.
