Supernatural Tales [Paperback]

Vernon Lee (Author), L. Cooper Willis (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2003

Penned at a time when the literature of the fantastic was at its peak, this chilling collection of eerie tales fuses the fantastic with the decadent, creating new artistic forms redolent with satanic imagery, morbid atmospheres, and obsessive notions of decay. Soaked in the intoxicating warmth and aromas of Italian pastoral idylls, these stories are also pervaded by eerie or macabre sensations, particularly when the past suddenly intrudes into the life of the protagonists. The stories include "Prince Alberic and the Snake Lady," the tale of a handsome prince who falls for a beautiful woman who may well be a reptile; "A Wedding Chest," a story of love and assassination; "Amour Dure," which tells of Medea Malatesta, a dangerous beauty so compelling that wretches under the torturer's knife remain hopelessly faithful to her; "A Wicked Voice," which concerns a Norwegian composer whose style is corrupted by the ghostly voice of a male soprano; "The Legend of Madame Krasinka," the tale of the American wife of a Polish count who is saved from hanging herself by the ghost of a beggar; and "The Virgin of the Seven Daggers," an intricate admixture of several elements, part dream within a dream.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Vernon Lee began her career as an acclaimed art historian, before branching out into sociology and fiction. Among her many contemporary admirers were Browning, Walter Pater, Shaw, Whistler, and Edith Wharton.

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Peter Owen Publishers; Revised edition (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0720611946
• ISBN-13: 978-0720611946
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,883,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Six Intriguing Tales - Italian Art, Music, Architecture, and Horror, September 17, 2006

By 

Michael Wischmeyer (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Supernatural Tales (Paperback)

This collection, Supernatural Tales - Excursions into Fantasy, offers six intriguing stories by Vernon Lee: Prince Alberic and the Snake Lady, A Wedding Chest, Amour Dure, A Wicked Voice, The Legend of Madame Krasinska, and The Virgin of the Seven Daggers. A lengthy introduction is provided by Irene Cooper Willis. These tales were written from 1881 to 1913 and have appeared in various collections.

Five of these stories take place in Italy; decaying mansions and aging ruins seem somber and vaguely menacing. Vernon Lee's detailed descriptions of faded tapestries, darkened paintings, and crumbling architecture reflect her life long passion for Italian art, music, and architecture. The setting for the last story, The Virgin of the Seven Daggers, is in Grenada in the reign of Philip IV.

Prince Alberic and the Snake Lady: A worn and discolored tapestry depicting a disturbing vision - a woman that is part reptilian - fascinates unduly, almost obsessively, the young Prince Alberic, grandson to Duke Balthasar.

A Wedding Chest: This short tale reveals the ghastly history of art auction item no. 428, a much stained and damaged coffer intended for garments and jewels of a bride. Lee's imaginative tale is one of kidnapping and murder.

Amour Dure: This is a classic story of the evil that dieth not, and is perhaps the most frightening in this collection. A visiting scholar becomes increasingly obsessed with the legend of Medea Malatesta, a dangerous, seductively beautiful woman whose lovers remained hopelessly faithful until their death, even when betrayed and dying under torture.

A Wicked Voice: The singer Balthasar Cesari, known popularly as Zaffrino, was said to have made a pact with the devil in return for vocal gifts greater than any singer, ancient or modern. A visiting Norwegian composer unwisely scoffs at this legend.

The Legend of Madame Krasinka: It is said that on occasion the dead are forgiving for abuse and mistreatment in life. Perhaps.

The Virgin of the Seven Daggers: Don Juan Gusman del Pulgar, count of Miramor, in his prayers admits that he has committed every crime without faltering, including murder, perjury, blasphemy, and sacrilege; he only asks of Madonna of the Seven Daggers to save him from eternal fire. In return, he promises to assert by tongue and sword to all that no lady was ever so fair as our Lady of the Seven Daggers. This account relates the rather unusual circumstances in which Don Juan honors his promise.

Another Recommendation: A Dover publication, Five Victorian Ghost Novels (edited by E. F. Bleiler), includes a ghost novel by Vernon Lee. A Phantom Lover (1890) is quite remarkable for its detailed characterizations and psychological complexity. It would not be an exaggeration to compare A Phantom Lover with the literary ghost stories by Henry James. Much like The Turn of the Screw, this short novel engenders multiple interpretations and warrants repeated readings. A Phantom Lover was also published under the title Oke of Okehurst.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Forgotten Author should be republished, reevaluated, December 14, 2000

By 

"opusv5" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Supernatural Tales: Excursions into Fantasy (Hardcover)

This author (real name Violet Paget)seems somewhat forgotten. She was noted in her time (the late 19th and earlier 20th centuries)as a critic of art, architecture and aesthetics. Her friends and admirers included John Singer Sargent, Robert Browning, G B Shaw and Edith Wharton. Her supernatural stories are sometimes found in related anthologies.While probably not masterpieces of the genre, they are at least interesting and have an historical-geographical locale related to Vernon Lee's life and writings. "Prince Alberic and the Snake Lady" deals with a regal youth's infatuation with a family legend, that of a snake women with whom the prince becomes enraptured. "Amour Dure" recounts a Polish student's obsession with a lethal, 16th century Italian seductress.The stories are written with a literate precision which fails to evoke atmosphere. Her language nonetheless evidences intelligence and appreciation of the surroundings (Italy, Spain)in which they are set. Hopefully she will be reappreciated, republished and included more in anthologies of that difficult story form: the supernatural.