The Evil Guest [Kindle Edition]

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 188 KB
• Publisher: Public Domain Books (December 1, 2003)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000JMKXMO
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,046 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Surprise!, May 23, 2009

By 

Ingrid G. "Nimbette2" (Georgia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Evil Guest (Kindle Edition)

I bought this freebie because the title intrigued me. I really enjoyed the style Le Fanu used to describe the moods and settings of such a dark mystery. The plot turns out to not be as scandalous for today's audiences, but it's a fun ride to the end. This is a must read for people who enjoy gothic literature. I am off to read his vampire novels next. (review written from my kindle).

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another good story by Le Fanu, January 23, 2010

By 

WerePossum - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Evil Guest (Kindle Edition)

This book is a good mystery thriller.It is written with the same style as the other books I have read by Le Fanu. It has many interesting characters with excellent imagery created by the authors descriptions of both places and people. It is an easy read but well written. Synopsis: A rather isolated and unhappy household is plagued by the horrible murder of an unwanted guest. The story centers around the dark and brooding master of the house.The plot contains villainous characters, murder,and scandalous affairs.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A ghastly tale from the father of the Victorian ghost story, July 5, 2010

By 

Patto (Vermont) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Evil Guest (Kindle Edition)

No one creates an atmosphere of evil and foreboding as effectively as Le Fanu (1814-1873). A recluse after his wife's death, Le Fanu wrote into the night by the light of two candles. Perhaps the shadows that danced on his page fed the sense of supernatural dread so potent in his prose.

Published in l895, the story looks back to the 1830's. The setting is a gloomy, neglected English mansion twenty some miles from the nearest town. The Honorable Richard Marston lives in genteel poverty with his family. The dissipations of his youth have left him much reduced. The decay of the house reflects the moral decay of its master, a man of violent passions and morose temperament.

His daughter's governess is a beautiful Frenchwoman with fascinating ways - one of those dangerous beauties whose eyes develop a villainous gleam when no one's looking.

Into this uncomfortable household Le Fanu introduces an unwelcome, self-invited guest: Marston's cousin, the fashionable and hugely wealthy baronet, Sir Wynston Berkley.

This lively beau of fifty is destined to be hideously murdered in his room. How his death affects the lives and minds of the characters is the substance of a plot rich in psychological drama.

Often the reader senses the truth behind the mystery, but this does nothing to lesson the impact of one disturbing scene after the next. Even the servants behave strangely in this strange story.

But don't be afraid to plunge into Le Fanu's sinister world. This horrific tale of guilt and madness keeps the innocent safe from harm - and has a (relatively) happy outcome. I recommend it heartily - along with everything else Le Fanu wrote.