The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne

by Ann Radcliffe

Book Overview

Ann Radcliffe's first novel is set in the Middle Ages against the melancholy beauty of mountains and rugged coasts of the Scottish Highlands, tells the story of the warring clan chieftains of Athlin and Dunbayne. One of the earliest Gothic tales (1789), it recounts low-born Alleyn's quest for love and honour, and alternates scenes of passionate feeling with breakneck pursuits. The castle itself, in all its romantic sublimity, becomes the true focal...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0192823574
• ISBN13: 9780192823571
• Release Date: April 1995
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 4.6" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

Early Romance

This book is one of the earliest examples of the romantic novel. The plot was original for its time, though certainly nothing new today. It is completely predictable. Nevertheless, it is interesting as a study of English literature and the development of the novel. This was Radcliffe's first novel, and became the model for many of her later works, as well as the works of many other novel writers. This book is very plot-driven. The characters are flat, and dialogue or character thought is almost completely non existant. The action in the story leads the text. It also contains the typical hero/heroine relationship; the men, in accordance to the time this book was written, do all the fighting and rescuing, while the women sit at home, unable to do anything but worry and faint.