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A review by boezaaah
The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
3.0
Gothic literature always hits the mark, and this one definitely did not miss.
This book is often referred to as one of the most influential gothic novels, and it's so clear to me the impact it has had on literature since. This is creepy and messed up (thanks to men of course), and intriguing the entire way through. I will admit I did get a little bored towards the end because I felt like it was all conflict and no direction, but the last few pages were insane and definitely redeemed it for me. The Castle of Otranto was an easier read than I was expecting. I went in expecting to be reading and rereading sentences for ages before I understood what was going on, but surprisingly, I flew through this just like I would any other classic! I really did enjoy this, but I would not recommend it to new readers of classic literature, because I do think it can be complicated if you aren't familiar with the language.
Also, I think it's necessary to tell you all that upon the death of a character (I won't say who), Horace Walpole chooses to describe their death as an 'expiration', and I think that's the funniest thing of all time.
This book is often referred to as one of the most influential gothic novels, and it's so clear to me the impact it has had on literature since. This is creepy and messed up (thanks to men of course), and intriguing the entire way through. I will admit I did get a little bored towards the end because I felt like it was all conflict and no direction, but the last few pages were insane and definitely redeemed it for me. The Castle of Otranto was an easier read than I was expecting. I went in expecting to be reading and rereading sentences for ages before I understood what was going on, but surprisingly, I flew through this just like I would any other classic! I really did enjoy this, but I would not recommend it to new readers of classic literature, because I do think it can be complicated if you aren't familiar with the language.
Also, I think it's necessary to tell you all that upon the death of a character (I won't say who), Horace Walpole chooses to describe their death as an 'expiration', and I think that's the funniest thing of all time.