But are they all horrid, are you sure they are all horrid?
Valancourt Books has published Clermont by Regina Maria Roche, the first in the Northanger Novels series, a set of the horrid novels listed by Isabella Thorpe for Catherine Morland’s information in Volume I, Chapter VI of Northanger Abbey.
“Dear creature! how much I am obliged to you; and when you have finished Udolpho, we will read the Italian together; and I have made out a list of ten or twelve more of the same kind for you.”
“Have you, indeed! How glad I am! — What are they all?”
“I will read you their names directly; here they are, in my pocket-book. Castle of Wolfenbach, Clermont, Mysterious Warnings, Necromancer of the Black Forest, Midnight Bell, Orphan of the Rhine, and Horrid Mysteries. Those will last us some time.”
“Yes, pretty well; but are they all horrid, are you sure they are all horrid?”
“Yes, quite sure; for a particular friend of mine, a Miss Andrews, a sweet girl, one of the sweetest creatures in the world, has read every one of them.”
According to the Valancourt Books Web site,
This exciting new edition (of Clermont) includes a new introduction comparing Roche with her rival Ann Radcliffe, and examining the similarities and differences between Clermont and The Mysteries of Udolpho, as well as a wealth of supplementary materials, contemporary reviews, and other information sure to be of great interest to any Gothic reader or scholar!
The Editrix imagines herself curled up by a roaring fire with a lovely pot of Dorothy’s Orange Pekoe and Henry Tilney reading horrid novels to her…if in this scenario Henry rather resembles Mr. Adrien Brody, perhaps wearing a flannel shirt with the first several buttons undone, we feel certain that the generous reader will forgive the Editrix her little fancies.
(via the Janeites listserv)
December 7th, 2005 at 3:58 am
Oooooo! I would adore to read Clermont (along with the others), I’ve only managed to read Udolpho so far
Kathleen
P.S. Can I borrow Henry to whisper snark into my ear after you’re finished?
December 7th, 2005 at 9:55 pm
Wellll, I suppose I should share…but make sure you give him back in the same condition that you got him!!!
December 10th, 2005 at 9:12 pm
Thanks so much for mentioning Clermont on your site! It really is a lovely book, and one can see why Austen enjoyed it. Unlike most of the Gothic novels of the time, which generally grew duller and duller as they went on, Clermont only gets more and more mysterious and suspenseful. If you’ve ordered a copy, I hope you enjoy it!
– Jay