Publisher's Synopsis
Five Gothic Tales are bound together in this special edition: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson Richard tells his cousin Gabriel, a lawyer, a story in which he witnessed a man named Edward Hyde trampling a young girl. All is not what it seems, however, as Edward Hyde disappears, and reemerges as a gentleman known to his patients as Dr. Henry Jekyll. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole Lord Manfred's son Conrad is to marry princess Isabella, but Conrad dies early. There is suspicion that the ancient prophecy has once again come to. To wit: That the castle and lordship of Otranto should pass from the present family, "whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it". And thus begins a series of terrifying events. History of Caliph Vathel by William Beckford The rise and fall of the great Caliph Vathek, who renounces Islam and attempts to gain supernatural powers. The Vampire; A Tale by John Polidori Young Englishman Aubrey meets Lord Ruthven, who seduces his friend's daughter during a trip to Italy. Aubrey departs for Greece and becomes infatuated with Ianthe, who explains the legends of the vampire before she dies in mysterious circumstances. Melmoth The Wanderer by Charles Maturin Irish student John Melmoth visits his dying uncle and discovers a portrait of an ancestor named "Melmoth" from 1646. During the funeral, John is hears the family story about a stranger who searched for "'Melmoth the Traveller' and found him laughing two lovers who were hit by lightning. Furthermore, it seems Melmoth crashed a wedding where the bride blushing bride died and the groom went insane.
