The Romance of the Forest

by Ann Radcliffe

Book Overview

This novel, although not as well-known as Radcliffe's later works, is thought to represent her work at its best. More than just a work of suspense and mystery, it is a work of ideas--a discussion of the contrasts between hedonistic doctrines and a system of education and values.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0199539227
• ISBN13: 9780199539222
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.0" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

The Romance in the Forest

I love this author. Her Gothic old stories are so fascinating that l have to keep ordering them. Radcliffe was born in the 17th century and Thrift can always find me these books quick and for a good 👍 price. I love 💕 them.

Terrifying in a romantic sort of way...

France, 1640s. Adeline has had a difficult life. After her mother dies, her father places her in a convent, where, in misery, she begs him to release her. When he finally acquiesces, it is to imprison her inside a shabby home. Then, without logic or explanation, she is sent off with a family that is passing by. Monsieur La Motte, along with his wife and two servants, has fled Paris after he resorts to a life of crime in order to pay his many debts. He accepts to care for Adeline. They find the perfect hiding place: an abandoned abbey in a forest. They try to live a semi-normal life in the ruins -- until the Marquis de Montalt, lord of the abbey, comes along and ruins everything. The marquis' appearance, along with the findings of a skeleton, a manuscript and hidden passages within the abbey, sets off a string of bizarre events and enormous revelations that have Adeline risk not only her virtue but also her life. First published in 1791, The Romance of the Forest began a trend of gothic novels that is still enjoyed today. Ann Radcliffe had very likely inspired authors like Emily and Charlotte Bronte, who in turn inspired Elizabeth Gaskell, Daphne du Maurier, Mary Stewart and others. The dark language and romanticism of the novel's setting of seventeenth century France enthralled me from beginning to end. The marquis is a despicable character, La Motte is not much better, and you fall in love with Theodore and feel sorry for Louis. The best part about the story is the narrative. Radcliffe describes scenery, mood and suspense with a romantic air that is difficult to resist. She even sprinkles the narrative with poems and sonnets. They do become tedious after a while though, and I admit to have skipped through some of them. I was confused through a major chunk of the novel, but, of course, everything makes perfect sense when the author ties all loose ends toward the end. The mystery is very well woven and there are some very surprising twists and turns in the story. The narrative does drag at times, especially during the middle of volume three, but it gets better toward the end, where is so riveting that you cannot wait to see how it all unfolds. All in all, The Romance of the Forest is a wonderful piece of classic gothic literature. The only Radcliffe I had read before this was The Italian, and now I cannot wait to reread that, but not before I read The Mysteries of Udolpho. Now THAT I cannot wait to get my hands on! Just call me a new Ann Radcliffe fan.

for fans of gothic

The first chapters of this gothic romance deal with the misfortunes of a Mr. La Motte and his wife. He has to run away from the city to avoid being imprisoned for debts. In their journey they meet the lovely and quintessential gothic heroine, Adeline, in very strange circumstances, that will be explained in the next chapters. From the beginning there are beatiful landscape descriptions, and an all pervading feeling of sadness, despair, and melancholy. The characters are uncertain about their safety, and their future, so they are unhappy. Mrs. La Motte and Adeline, feel the pangs of loneliness. Maybe this is a book about loneliness, and the way people feel about it. Like most horror and fantasy books, it is a book about loneliness. Mrs. Radcliffe creates an atmosphere of uncertainty, nobody really knows what is going to happen, and they always wait for the worst. The greatest terror is the terror of uncertainty, when everything people consider stable and firm, start to collapse. When things fall apart. I particullary liked when Adeline, while talking to Mr. La Motte, said that people can extract comfort from most situations. Even in a desperate moment, it is possible to find pleasure and forgetfulness, appreciating a quiet and peaceful place or relaxing in a lovely scenary, instead of always concentrating on your problems, or misfortunes. People, do not have to suffer the cloud of sorrow to tinge every object they look upon, - said Adeline-. Was not she right? Adeline always found comfort, in the contemplation of nature. Mrs. Radcliffe insists that people may find relief to their sorrows, contemplating a sublime place, or inmersing in nature. Mr. LaMotte and his family settled in an abandoned abbey, surrrounded by a thick wood, and a deserted countryside. A beautiful, and - at the same time - dreary place. Typical of this genre, the abbey has many recesses, secret chambers, cells, and apparently, a ghost. It seems that somebody dissapeared in the derelict abbey, a long time ago, in strange circumstances, and his spectre haunts the place. These facts succeed in creating a gloomy, melancholy and dreary atmosphere. A manuscript is found in one of the many recesses, that may explain what really happened in the abbey, and who were responsible for the misdeeds. There are some good sonnets interspersed in the text, like one dedicated to fancy, that may help people to forget their misfortunes, or some other dedicated to the night, and to a lilly. More disgraces await poor Adeline, she had to find out that people are not always what they seem to be. That certain persons she considered friends are not real friends. But in spite of her dissapointments, she still keeps faith in the goodness of humanity. She does not want to become a bitter person, who does not trust anybody, just because some people deceived her. With time, Adeline will learn that people may repent, and never are completely bad. The moods and feelings of Adeline, - fear, dispair, terror

Short and Sweet

The Mysteries of Udolpho is the best of the Radcliffe books, but I give this one 5 stars because it is still a very good read!

Romance of the English language......

I didn't love this book with the fervent devotion I love her Mysteries of Udolpho or The Italian, you can tell it was one of her first. Radcliffe's writing improved immensely. I wouldn't start out with this book, read Mysteries of Udolpho first! I am a die hard fan of Radcliffe's, this is another excellent and grand novel.

Beautiful Mystery

The story of a persecuted girl who is delivered from one person to another who are compelled by different motives to decide her destiny. Her beauty and refinement of character attract many to her, but only one wins her love and proves worthy of it by his noble actions.The plots of Radcliffe's mysteries have been efficiently summarized by Russell Noyes in an introduction of 1956:"The hero is a gentleman of noble birth, likely as not in some sort of disgrace; the heroine, an orphan-heiress, high-strung and sensitive, and highly susceptible to music and poetry and to nature in its most romantic moods. A prominent role is given to the tyrant-villain. He is a man of fierce and morose passions obsessed by the love of power and riches. The villain can usually be counted on to confine the heroine in the haunted wing of a castle because she refuses to marry someone she hates. Whatever the details, Mrs. Radcliffe generally manages the plot and action so that the chief impression is a sense of the young heroine's incessant danger. On oft-repeated midnight prowls about the gloomy passageways of a rambling, ruined castle, the heroine in a quiver of excitement (largely self-induced) experiences a series of hair-raising adventures and narrow escapes. Her emotional tension is kept to the pitch by a succession of strange sights and sounds . . . and by an assorted array of sliding panels, trap doors, faded hangings, veiled portraits, bloodstained garments, and even dark and desperate characters."Many reviewers claim that no other Radcliffe mystery measures up to her Mysteries of Udolpho. I was hesitant to read others after reading Udolpho and loving it, but I decided not to trust the reviewers and read three more. The same beautiful descriptions, the stories within stories and the mysteries appearing and perplexing the reader, then having full explanations continued to adorn her most marvellous writings. If you want one more page-turner, you have it in this story. The literary beauty and the mysterious characters and events will keep you reading.