A Sicilian Romance

About This Book

First published in 1790, A Sicilian Romance is an early Gothic novel by Ann Radcliffe (1764–1823), set in a crumbling castle on the coast of Sicily during the late sixteenth century. The story follows Julia and Emilia, the daughters of the Marquis of Mazzini, who discover that a wing of their father's castle is haunted — or so they are told. In truth, the sounds and lights conceal a terrible family secret. A Sicilian Romance established many of the conventions of Gothic fiction: the persecuted heroine, the tyrannical father, the ruined Mediterranean setting, and the explained supernatural. It was Radcliffe's second novel. The work is in the public domain.

Excerpt

On the northern shore of Sicily are still to be seen the magnificent remains of a castle, which formerly belonged to the noble house of Mazzini.— Opening of A Sicilian Romance

What Critics Say

The great enchantress.— Thomas De Quincey

Publication Details