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Reader discussion: The Castle of Otranto

Public reader discussion about The Castle of Otranto in the WeRead Catalog by Horace Walpole.

[Review] The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

By thymeBookish

Rating: 4/5 Genre: Classic / Gothic / Horror So, The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole came out in 1764, and yeah, it’s usually treated like the first proper Gothic novel. The whole plot kicks off when the prince’s only heir gets killed by this giant helmet, and then things spiral into a mess—lust, corruption, murder, madness—and it doesn’t take long before the supernatural stuff starts creeping in. It starts off kind of celebratory, but then it turns into a full-on nightmare. I actually meant to read this months ago, mainly because I wanted to do it before Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey for “Jane Austen July.” That plan fell through, so I ended up picking this up way later than I wanted to. Honestly, it was kinda hard to rate it. How do you score a book that basically set up an entire genre? It’s dramatic, chaotic, and really atmospheric. You get all the classic Gothic ingredients—creepy castles, fainting ladies, big dramatic reactions, duels, talk of saints and the church—like, it feels like the stuff that people later leaned on. There’s constant suspense too, with a lot of turns and twists. It’s also short and punchy, only 5 chapters, and it moves fast. Something important seems to happen almost every sentence. The “horror” isn’t so much jump-scare stuff—it’s more the mood and vibe than anything in your face. The writing is a bit old-fashioned, but it wasn’t so far out there that I couldn’t follow. I also enjoyed seeing how words have changed over the centuries—some familiar words were used in ways I didn’t expect. The main thing that slowed me down sometimes was the language, mostly because it asks for your attention. That might be the only real hurdle for some readers. Other than that, I’d say it’s pretty beginner-friendly and entertaining. Would definitely recommend it.

TIL that Horace Walpole, who wrote what is considered to be the first gothic/horror novel (The Castle of Otranto), was the son of the UK’s first Prime Minister, Robert Walpole.

By Red_Field

This place feels like a joke if you’re not too invested, but if you care, it’s straight-up tragic.

A list of the 100 greatest novels of all time...as compiled in 1898

By BlueRaven60

Honestly, I’m kind of shocked that so many of those older books still hold up. I also noticed that the list has a bunch of what they’d call “sensational” novels—stuff we’d probably label horror or mystery now. The Castle of Otranto is often mentioned as the first of that sort of thing, and it’s completely unhinged by today’s standards. Like, at one point a giant helmet just falls out of the sky and crushes a main character.

Are gothic buildings supposed to be scary?

By tender-badger

So many gothic buildings—like churches and old mansions—just feel creepy or kind of scary. Was that on purpose? Or did the style just happen to be popular back then and the designers never expected people today (maybe just me) to read it that way? Edit: also, thanks to everyone who replied—these were really helpful. I know basically nothing about architecture, so I appreciate you explaining it in a way a normal person can follow. I’ve been enjoying reading everyone’s answers.

Rec Gothic Horrors with Incest?

By pagemargin

Hey everyone! I’m really into gothic horror stuff, and I’ll be honest—I like when it gets extra messy with incest in it, haha. Right now I’m reading V.C. Andrews. I’ve already finished Flowers in the Attic and the Heaven series, and I’m planning to jump into the Landry/Ruby books next. After that, I wanna find even more like this. I’m not super into non-consensual scenes, but I can still handle it if it’s there, it’s not an automatic no. Thanks in advance! ❤

Desperately looking for good books to get out of a reading slump

By Bird_Hidden

I’ve been stuck in one of those super long reading slumps where I start a book and just can’t get into it. I’ll abandon it, grab something else, and it’s the same story. The only thing that really worked recently was Earthlings by Sayaka Murata—I ended up finishing it and I did like it well enough, but it didn’t really light a fire in me. If anyone has recommendations, I’m open to anything (preferably fiction).

Looking for novels/stories about haunted houses: classics, as well as different takes on that theme

By atlas_stone

I’m really into books/stories where the “haunted house” vibe gets pushed in interesting ways. Like the classic must-reads with ghosts/spirits/entities, but also stuff that goes off the rails—haunted buildings that aren’t even houses, like weird places (closets, sewers, carnivals), paranormal locations, the whole “memory/trauma stuck in a place” angle, or that idea where a house feels like it has its own life/soul. I also like stories where the place itself changes or moves, has doorways to other worlds, keeps secrets, or just gives off this lingering eerie energy. Could be novels, YA, short stories, comics/graphic novels, non-fiction—basically any format. Here are a few I’ve already read that fit what I’m after: - The House of the Spirits (Allende) - Coldheart Canyon & Thief of Always (Clive Barker) - Something Wicked This Way Comes (Bradbury) - In Watermelon Sugar & The Hawkline Monster (Brautigan) - House of Leaves (Danielewski) - We Have Always Lived in the Castle (Shirley Jackson) - It & The Shining (King) I’m also reading The Three-Body Problem right now, and I honestly have no clue what’s going on yet, but it kind of feels like Earth (like… the biggest house) is being haunted by something.

Just finished THE CASTLE OF OTRANTO by Horace Walpole (1764), the first gothic horror novel.

By dullorchid1997

Yeah, it’s not like Straub or King or anything, but it kind of feels like the granddaddy of the whole thing. The book really nails that old medieval vibe, then mixes it with all these tragic (and honestly pretty funny) disasters happening to tons of different people, all because of some weird supernatural force. I’ll admit, I was a little let down at first. My brain wanted to know how something this old could’ve influenced so much, but once I stopped judging it and actually just went with the story, wow. As soon as I quit expecting some ghost to jump out on every page (which is not at all what I pictured “gothic” being…), I got completely hooked. I ended up caring way more about the characters than I thought I would—their messes, their love stuff, their fights—you name it. It made me feel sympathetic, and then it also made me laugh, which I didn’t expect. Walpole is really good with people, and even when you’re distracted by the dialogue, the scary part still sneaks up on you. I did get chills. Short and super influential, but I wasn’t disappointed at all—please do yourselves a favor and read it.

A book that you thought was amazing but has less than a 3.0 on GoodReads~

By thymeBookish

I’ve been realizing that Goodreads doesn’t always do a great job judging whether a book is actually good.

Goodreads Game: tell us the lowest-rated book you've given 5 stars, and the highest-rated book you've given 3 stars or less, and why

By ink_rusty

I figured it’d be kinda fun to compare what people say they like and dislike versus the usual “book wisdom,” and then try to understand why someone’s into something (or not). If you want to try it and you’re the type who rates stuff on Goodreads: log in, go to “My Books,” then sort your rated books by “avg rating” from lowest to highest. Find the first one you personally gave 5 stars. Then click “avg rating” again to flip it high to low, and find the first book you gave 3 stars (or less). For me, the top-rated book I gave 3 stars or lower is *The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend* by David Gemmell. It’s sitting at like a 4.37 average, but I only gave it 3. I’m a huge Gemmell fan—I’ve read basically everything he’s done—but I just felt this one was among the weaker, least interesting entries. I really like how his heroes are all messed up and have to fight their own demons to become “heroes,” but since this is a prequel, young Druss doesn’t have that same kind of backstory and drive that makes his usual characters so good. On the flip side, the lowest-rated book I gave 5 stars is *The Island of the Day Before* by Umberto Eco, with an average rating around 3.49. I totally get why people rate it the way they do—it’s pretty much plotless, and it’s basically digressions stacked on more digressions. But I’m weirdly okay with that kind of rambling, and I also feel like Eco is doing it on purpose, not accidentally wandering off for hundreds of pages. I genuinely love the book, but I also know a lot of people are probably going to be bored out of their minds by it.

What are some of your 5 star, always recommend reads?

By Bright-Teacup

My girlfriend’s really into horror, and I want to put together a list of some great books I can send her. She’s kinda stuck in a reading slump right now, so I’d love any recommendations. Edit: Thanks everyone for the suggestions!! I showed them to my gf and she got really excited—she’s already started a few, and I think a bunch more got added to her TBR.

The Castle of Otranto, Horace Walpole

By Lazy_Velvet39362

Wearing or making that armor sounds like it would’ve been such a pain.

The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

By chapter-lilac

Just wrapped up The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole last night. It came out in 1764, and I guess it’s pretty much the first Gothic novel. I really liked how fast it moves—there’s always something happening, and the whole thing kept pulling me along. The writing is kind of archaic, though, and the edition I used (Oxford World Classics) helped a lot with the notes. My biggest problem was the super long paragraphs, especially when there are conversations going on between multiple people and it’s not always easy to tell who’s talking. It’s got a lot of the early Gothic vibe: it’s set in Italy, there’s supernatural stuff happening, and there’s a pretty strong misogynistic streak. I also felt like Ann Radcliffe might be the first one who really gives you solid female characters. I wouldn’t say it’s for everyone. I think it’ll be best for people who already like Gothic novels and want to see where it all started. Next I’m planning to read Clara Reeve and Ann Radcliffe since they read Walpole and then went on with their own Gothic works.

The Castle of Otranto

By honestdelta4

Can I get some thoughts on Walpole’s *Otranto*? I’m kind of stuck on what I think. I did enjoy the old-school, archaic wording (maybe I’m weird for that), but a lot of the stuff the characters do and say just felt stiff and hard to believe. And honestly, there was more back-and-forth about marriage than I wanted. Overall I thought it was better than I expected, but I still had trouble getting invested in the characters. The only one I really found pleasant was Theodore, and his dad came off pretty decent and sympathetic too.

250 years after The Castle of Otranto was published, the British Library presents TERROR & WONDER: THE GOTHIC IMAGINATION (running 10/3 - 1/20)

By blackduck

That’s awesome—I really wish I could’ve been there to watch it.

The Castle of Otranto - Thoughts

By Lake_Frog

This was really short, but I actually liked how it moved along. It’s such a weird but interesting story and it just keeps going—like even the ending came out of nowhere, but in a good way. The characters don’t get super deep, though, but they do the job and keep the plot moving. I liked Manfred’s whole vibe and the big reveal at the end, but Hippolita honestly bothered me. I also wasn’t totally sure about some of the myth stuff, like that whole suspicion about a giant in the castle. It’s not really my usual genre, but it was still fun to try something different. Not my favorite thing ever, but I didn’t get bored once. I’d say 7.7/10.

Was Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" really the first horror/sci-fi novel?

By UnfetterWrites

I keep seeing Mary Shelley’s *Frankenstein* (1818) talked about like it’s the first horror and/or science fiction novel ever. I guess it might be the earliest big one I can think of—written way before Stoker’s *Dracula* (1897) and even before Verne’s *Journey to the Center of the Earth* (1864). But honestly, sci-fi and horror are so broad that it feels weird to me that nobody wrote novels in them before the 1800s. I know the lines between genres get blurry, but is the whole “first horror/sci-fi novelist” thing actually accurate, or were there earlier writers (maybe not as famous) who did stuff in those areas?

"The Castle of Otranto", by Horace Walpole.

By tender-badger

So this was published in London in 1764 and they say it’s the first “Gothic novel.” The author was H.W. (the 4th Earl of Orford), who was more of a politician/historian type, not really a genre writer. It’s only 98 pages, so it feels like something you could knock out in one sitting. I grabbed the audiobook this morning and I’m already trying to come up with something decent to say about it over lunch. What I keep liking is the old-school writing style—the thee/thou stuff and all that. Honestly I don’t find it hard to get into either, even though it’s from forever ago. Like, I read Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Kidnapped” and that felt way denser. Overall it’s a pretty fun story: a haunted castle, entertaining characters, and a super melodramatic, fast-moving plot. It almost gives the vibe of a stage play, except it’s not Shakespeare (even with the ghosts).

Dark books with cults and stuff

By AtomAtlas1985

I’m kind of hunting for something dark—like cults and/or religious fanatics. I’m open to anything from satan-worship vibes to demons or vampires, and I’d really like that Lovecraft-ish or Diablo kind of lore feel. Fantasy, horror, detective stuff, whatever—no big limits. I’ve read a handful of Lovecraft books already, so I’m trying to find something in that same lane.

Old castle mystery books?

By sleepypanther

I saw a description (below) in a comment on a piano video and now I’m kinda itching to read something similar. Like eerie and mysterious, set in an old castle or mansion. I don’t mind if it’s a little cliché either—I mean, it’s basically spooky season. I’m not trying to be totally terrified, more like that creepy-atmosphere vibe. If anyone’s got suggestions, I’d really appreciate it! “Walking slowly down a grand marble staircase in an abandoned Austrian castle at midnight, wearing some fancy gown, with silent lightning flashing and making my silhouette stand out against giant, ancient portraits.” Edit: thanks everyone—I’ve got a great list of mysteries and thrillers to pick from for October 🎃