The Castle of Otranto

By: Horace Walpole

Narrated by: Neville Jason

The Castle of Otranto is regarded as the first Gothic novel. The son of Manfred, Prince of Otranto, is mysteriously killed on his wedding day by a huge helmet. The event leads to a fast-paced story of jealous passion, intrigue, murder, and supernatural phenomena unfolding in an atmosphere of thunderclaps, moonlight, and dark castle walls mirroring the inner turmoil of the characters themselves. Horace Walpole's tale, an immediate success when it first appeared in 1764, is a classic of its genre.

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2014 Naxos AudioBooks

Fun, Twisty Tale

If you are a fan of pre-twentieth century writing styles and vocabulary usage, and have a tolerance for random plot twists, give this one a try.

The performance is fantastic, and Walpole is a great yarn spinner.

Terrible

Absolutely TERRIBLE. The story was incoherent. The characters were all over the place. The plot was non existent. Someone recommended this as a story similar to Dracula. That's a BLASPHEMOUS COMPARISON!!! This is nothing like Dracula. Save your credit.