Book description
From the first moment Vincentio di Vivaldi, a young nobleman, sets eyes
on the veiled figure of Ellena, he is captivated by her enigmatic beauty
and grace. But his haughty and manipulative mother is against the match
and enlists the help of her confessor to come between them. Schedoni,
previously a leading figure of the Inquisition, is a demonic, scheming
monk with no qualms about the task, whether it entails abduction,
torture - or even murder. The Italian secured Ann Radcliffe's position
as the leading writer of Gothic romance of the age, for its atmosphere
of supernatural and nightmarish horrors, combined with her evocation of
sublime landscapes and chilling narrative.
Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823) was the leading exponent of Gothic fiction
and, during her lifetime, she published five novels including A
Sicilian Romance (1790) and The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) as well as
a collection of European travel writings. Her novels were immensely
popular and much imitated.
Robert Miles teaches English at Sheffield Hallam University. He is
the author of Gothic Writing (Routledge) and Ann Radcliffe: The Great
Enchantress (Manchester UP).
