Blood and Roses: The Vampire in 19th Century Literature

by Adele Olivia Gladwell (Editor), Joris-Karl Huysmans, Arthur Machen

The definitive collection of 19th Century literature in which the vampire, or vampirism - both embodied and atmospheric - appears. Seventeen seminal texts by legendary European authors, covering the whole of that delirious period from Gothic and Romantic, through Symbolism and Decadence to proto-Surrealism and beyond, in a single volume charged with sex, blood and horror. Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Baudelaire, Arthur Machen, Le Comte de Lautramont, Count Stenbock, J-K Huysmans, Jean Lorrain, Thophile Gautier, Charles Nodier, J Sheridan Le Fanu, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Oscar Wilde, Ivan Turgenev, Charlotte Bronte, J.M.Ryder.

Genres: Vampires, 19th Century, Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, Gothic

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stories included: The Vampyre by John Polidori, Smarra (an excerpt) by Charles Nodier, ravishing Clarimonde, now titled as The Beautiful Dead, by Theophile Gautier, Ligeia by Edgar Allan Poe, Varney the Vampyre or The Feast of Blood (an excerpt) by J.M. Rymer, Jane Eyre (excerpts) by Charlotte Bronte, The Vampire's Metamorphoses (effective poem) by Charles Baudelaire, The House and the Brain by Edward Bulwer Lytton, wonderful Phantoms by Ivan Turgenev, Madoror - The First Song by Isidore Ducasse, Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, The Horla by Guy de Maupassant, La-Bas (an excerpt) by Joris-Karl Huysmans, The Picture of Dorian Gray (an excerpt) by Oscar Wilde, The Inmost Light (weakest of the stories in my opinion) by Arthur Machen, enjoyable "male-cast Carmilla" The True Story of A Vampire by Count Stenbock, and Dracula (excerpts) by Bram Stoker.

[S.L. Baron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful collection covering a wide range of 19th-century vampire literature, focusing on female vampires. Many stories are included on their entirety while others are only excerpts. An interesting essay regarding the feminine role in vampire mythology opens the collection.

If all you've ever read are the vampire novels of today, this collection will be a different experience for you. These stories don't exclude the blood aspect and undertones of sexual desire present in the vampire legend as do many books today. Plus, considering how the written word has changed over time, sometimes the syntax can be a bit difficult to follow. Keep going! These stories show us what bad-asses vampires were before modern authors de-fanged them!

This will be a collection I return to for years to come. Two of my favorite stories were "Carmilla" and "The Beautiful Dead."

[BookishDramas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of short stories with an underlined Camilla by Sheridan le fanu among my all time favorites. Very gothic and great reading. I haven't found a replacement book as yet after giving mine away in 2007.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty good selection of 19th vampire stories. However, some of the stories are merely excerpts. The best story by far is the classic "Carmilla," which is included in its entirety. The introductory essay is heavily Freudian. Overall, a good introduction to the "vampire tradition," though a bit on the pricey side. You may be better off buying these stories separately.