The Castle of Otranto
Vivid
Predictable
Dry

The Castle of Otranto a gothic story

Horace Walpole โ€” 1998

Deep cut โ€“ we couldn't find a description for this book.

Sign up to use

Reviews

Photo of wasnotwhynot
wasnotwhynot@wasnotwhynot
3.5 stars
Dec 31, 2024

the man who made the strawberry hill castle would have made a dark souls clone in our modern times. this I fervently believe.

historically an exercise of literally like "how do I get other people interested in my hyperfixations..." like the man set his story in this period, in a castle, because he was obsessed with both. horace walpole was a neurodivergent king and his biographers have convinced me that he's crested the wave of renewed interest in the chivalric romance, resulting eventually in the fantasy genre we have today.

the castle of otranto, though backed in its pseudo-realism or plausible religious truth, is an early fantasy/horror/historical hybrid, which critics have taken to call "gothic." technically the gothic is wapole's imitators. he was seemingly only interested in writing a historical novel.

but this is modern understandings of the work. a more fluid understanding would be like: it's a shakespearean drama that tries to convincingly take place in a castle, leaning on elements of the chivalric romance to give it authenticity. I think the way walpole includes and executes the supernatural is subdued and interesting, but I have to remind myself his intentions as an author were not mine as a reader.

okay blah blah all of this about genre history, stuff most people don't care about, belies a more simple question: is it any good? I found it charmingly workmanlike. its imitation of shakespeare is impeccable; it is entirely a prose version of a drama that could have been put on the stage at the time. this conformism and dedication to imitation makes it feel, to the bone, kindred with SFF (lmao).

something that's interesting in the book is how the tragedy involves norms taken for granted. early on u discover manfred desires to start the practice of saint leonardo dicaprio, wanting to annul his marriage and trade in his current wife for his much younger niece (once removed? I can't keep track of the royal incest...) walpole inserts a bunch time-locked ideas about gender, but, he also intensely disapproves of manfred here (probably in reference of henry VIII). the absolute control the princes believe they have over their relations and their charges as a result of the birth becomes their own undoing, the suffering they inflict becomes mirrored in their own lives.

Photo of Kendall McClain
Kendall McClain@kendallmcclain
4 stars
Jan 29, 2024

The first gothic story written- a true trailblazer<3 very interesting and absurd plot. It was giving cheesy Shakespeare with all the tragedy and the sudden revelations that everyone is related lmao I liked it but some parts were too far fetched

Photo of Marie
Marie@adastra
1 star
Jan 2, 2024

Wow, this is terrible.

Photo of Joey Baker
Joey Baker@brianjacquesoff
2 stars
Jan 9, 2023

Yo why do old people talk all gay and shit? Fuckin wall of text: The Novel(la) Despite being only 100+ pages, this shit was hard to get through. Dude's son was finna get some pussy (finally!), dies on his pussy-gettin day, and his dad is like "smdh. Now I got no son, and my bitch too old". So rather than letting good pussy go to waste, he decides he finna cash his old bitch in for a new one. So he tries to rape, and she's like "ong you cappin rn!" and runs away. Yada Yada Yada, the girls dad shows up, and the Dude (prince) was like "yo, sorry about your daughter. But I see you eyeballin my hot ass 14 yo daughter. How about you can have my daughters pussy if I can have yours?" DEAL!! exclaims the father. And uh, the prince stabs his own daughter? Then, fucking, the ghost finally shows up, and he a big ghost. And he's like yo, yung Theodore (central character I never mentioned) over there is my blood, cuz" then flies away to heaven and St. Nicholas is in the sky. Then it all comes full circle when Ted, who really wanted pussy off the prince's daughter and is sad now he won't get the chance to hit, decides that, yeah, maybe he could get some pussy off Isabella after a good month mourning period.

Photo of Millie
Millie@milliebigwilly
2 stars
Nov 2, 2022

the father of gothic literature is also tagged on here as horror, but the real dread came from not knowing if the next page would be more mind-numbing than the last.

Photo of Melody Izard
Melody Izard@mizard
1 star
Jan 10, 2022

Supposed to be the first Gothic novel. I think perhaps I just discovered I most positively am not a fan of the Gothic novel. There is a giant of some sort and a mean king and a charming good princes and an attempt at murdering a queen so that the mean king can marry the young princess who was supposed to marry his son - who he thinks is dead but really is not. And it was just confusing and tedious to me.

Photo of Laurie Abrial
Laurie Abrial@lau_reads
2 stars
Nov 18, 2021

Honestly this is quite a ridiculous story๐Ÿ˜‚ not well put together, with annoying characters with unrealistic backgrounds! Fortunately it was a quick read

Photo of Neveen Badr
Neveen Badr@faustianacademia
5 stars
Nov 5, 2021

** spoiler alert ** Laughter Passion Weeping Melancholy Knighthood Church A grave Ghost A young woman is distressed Death of almost everyone This novel is perfect!

Photo of Anna V
Anna V@green-leaves
3 stars
Oct 28, 2021

It was extremely sexist, but it is kind of OLD, so. Also, everyone is extremely forgiving.

Photo of Alexia Cambaling
Alexia Cambaling@alexiacambaling
2 stars
Oct 26, 2021

Review to come. Warning: Melodrama

Photo of Erin
Erin @pagesofmilkandhoney
3 stars
Aug 29, 2021

I once took a goth class in my first year of uni where the entire class was dedicated to gothic subculture and it was great. We watched Psycho, I wrote my final paper on Harry Potter, and we read this book. I had never read anything like it before, but I found it oddly intriguing. Would probably read again outside of a class context to see if I feel any differently.

Photo of Alice Jones
Alice Jones @aalicejones
4 stars
Sep 4, 2024
Photo of Sarah Sammis
Sarah Sammis@pussreboots
2 stars
Apr 4, 2024
Photo of ellie ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿ’Œโญ๏ธ
ellie ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿ’Œโญ๏ธ@elliebennett
2.5 stars
Mar 10, 2023
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills
3 stars
Jan 23, 2023
Photo of Arianna M
Arianna M@letterarii
4.5 stars
Nov 6, 2022
+1
Photo of Francesca
Francesca@franci_pandini
2.5 stars
Jun 18, 2022
Photo of Annalena Sell
Annalena Sell@hadeslordoftheunderworld
2 stars
Apr 11, 2022
+7
Photo of louise
louise@ouie
3 stars
Jul 17, 2024
Photo of fari
fari@aroseforfari
5 stars
Jul 9, 2024
Photo of frdose
frdose@frdose
5 stars
May 20, 2024
Photo of baku
baku@swallowthemoons
3 stars
Apr 7, 2024
Photo of Lindsy Rice
Lindsy Rice@lindsyrice
4 stars
Jan 12, 2024
Photo of Amanda Jones
Amanda Jones@pagesofmay
3 stars
Jan 1, 2024

Highlights

Photo of Aren B.
Aren B.@saintcruor
  • โ€œIt is sinful, to cherish those whom heaven has doomed to destruction.โ€

Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

It is sinful, replied the friar, to cherish those whom heaven has doomed to destruction. A tyrant's race must be swept from the earth to the third and fourth generation.

Page 83
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

Is my honesty the price I must pay for this dear youth's safety?

For me! cried Theodore: let me die a thousand deaths, rather than stain thy conscience.

Page 52
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

Seize him, continued Manfred, and bind him - the first news the princess hears of her champion shall be, that he has lost his head for her sake.

Page 49
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

A by-stander often sees more of the game than those that play, answered Bianca. Does your

Page 41
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

A bad husband is better than no husband at all.

Page 37
Photo of Abigail Mills
Abigail Mills@abigailmills

The next transition of his soul was to exquisite villainy.

Page 35