Gothic Auntie

Romance and horror have been tied together since Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto and launched the gothic genre, permanently altering the brain chemistry of an entire era in the process. If you’re lucky enough to find yourself in a relationship with a bookish horror fan this year then a gothic novel (or two, or three) would make for a perfect Valentine’s Day gift – and because I’d like to make a little bit of money off affiliate links I’ve been putting together some handy gift guides to help you make the right choice. Just make sure you sneakily scour your partner’s bookshelves first, it’ll give you a better idea of their tastes as well as making sure you avoid duplicates.

“The Romance of the Forest” by Ann Radcliffe

Ann Radcliffe is the mother of gothic romance, and The Romance of the Forest is the book that opened the floodgates of what came to be known as “women’s gothic” later down the line. Featuring Adeline, a classic fleeing the castle (or abbey in this case) while wearing a nightgown model of heroine, The Romance of the Forest has all the hallmarks of the genre that we’ve come to know and love — from romantic ruins to a horny villain desperate to ruin our innocent heroines virtue. Pairing histrionic drama with intellectual musing on philosophy, academia, and the intellect, it’s a fascinating book both in itself and because of the movement it inspired.

“The Phantom of the Opera” by Gaston Leroux

The Phantom of the Opera is another romantic gothic classic. Not just because of the musical, though that certainly helped, but because there’s a lot of genuine romance in there; whether you ship Christine and Raoul, or because the Phantom himself ran so dark romance could walk. It’s also just got one of the most gloriously romantic gothic aesthetics going for it, with all that baroque theatre and the nightmare under the opera house. If your partner is a fan of the musical but hasn’t read the book yet or just doesn’t own a copy then this could be the one. It’s also pretty affordable, with a range of pretty, gothic covers for their aesthetic pleasure.

“Carmilla” by Sheridan LeFanu

Probably the book for Sapphic vampire lovers, Sheridan LeFanu’s Carmilla set the archetype and defined the genre decades before Dracula came on the scene. A horror of obsession, desire, and intimate betrayal, Carmilla exposes Victorian male anxieties around female sexuality and its capacity to subvert heteronormative standards. Claustrophobic, disturbing, and yet still enticing in places, Carmilla embodies the tension between disgust and seduction gothic horror excels at. (The linked book is a hardback rather than paperback, but it’s at a paperback price and also really beautiful — the red sections of the cover are metallic).

“Wuthering Heights” by Emily Brontë

While Ann Radcliffe may be the mother of the genre Wuthering Heights is probably the most iconic of the gothic romances, with it’s tale of intense and deeply toxic love set in the North of England moors. I’ve actually put together a list of special edition copies of Wuthering Heights, with prices as low as ten pounds, if your partner enjoys books that double as art objects – but if you’re looking for a more casual paperback version then this Vintage Publishing edition might do.