25 Classic Gothic Novels

People all over the world love to read novels be they of any genre. As we all know that there is a variety of novels to choose from such as romance, comedy, gothic, horror etc. Romance and comedy take centre stage when it comes to reading novels.

But, some people prefer to read gothic and horror novels as well. So, in this blog, we are going to focus solely on gothic novels.

So, what are gothic novels? The term gothic literature or novel refers to a  writing style that has the elements of fear, horror, death, and gloom. On the other hand, it also contains elements of romance, nature, individuality, and some very high emotions.

These novels invoke all these emotions when we read gothic novels. That is why these novels are very popular as well.

Nowadays, the trend of reading gothic novels has increased in the younger generation as they read different titles by different authors and even post stories of the same on their social media handles.

Even movies are being made in the genre of gothic by many renowned directors in Hollywood and even Bollywood.

Let’s look at some of the benefits of reading Gothic literature.

Benefits of Reading Gothic Literature

Some of the benefits of reading gothic novels are as follows-

1. When we want to get a good feeling of scariness and want to up our levels of adrenaline, we turn to gothic novels as they have all the elements that we have mentioned above. It gives us literal goosebumps as well. These stories contain supernatural heroes that sometimes give us a scare when reading these novels.

2. Secondly, these novels can take you back in time by giving you a good history lesson now and then. So, if your mind and heart want to explore a specific time in history and want to learn about how people lived during that era, it's a good thing to get your hands on a gothic novel.

3. These novels don’t just read like novels, they are sort of poems that poetically tell you about how a particular character is feeling during a particular scene in the novel. So, one must pay attention to how the characters are behaving in the novel, rather than just reading it for the sake of reading.

4. These novels in themselves contain a hidden world that we are not aware of. It helps readers think outside the box and increase their imaginative powers. Through these novels, readers can think of almost any situation in the world described. Any character in the novel can be a hero or a villain. Furthermore, readers also get to know how the author has used his/her imagination and how they are showing their hidden desires or curiosities.

5. These novels also provide various twists and turn in a story. This way the intermingling of two things gives more interest to the reader in reading and finishing the novel. For example, one novel can contain both horror and romance or it can contain both horror and comedy. So, these novels provide the best of both worlds.

6. Additionally, gothic novels can play with the minds of the readers by portraying things that one feels should happen also in reality. However, it is all just fantasy and such things are not possible in real life. Nevertheless, it surely gives an awakening call to all readers.

7. These novels also give a sense of freedom by keeping the atmosphere and background eerie or scary.  Nevertheless, gothic literature is a great way to spend your free time when you have nothing much to do.

Let’s now take a look at some of the popular novels in gothic fiction that people love to read.

25 Classic Gothic Novels that people love even today

Some of these novels are as follows-

1. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

2. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

3. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

4. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

5. Ghost Summer by Tananarive Due

6. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

7. The Secret History by Donna Tartt

8. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

9. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

10. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

11. Beloved by Toni Morrison

12. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

13. Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

14. The Widow of Rose House by Diana Biller

15. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

16. The Governesses by Anne Serre

17. Things in Jars by Jess Kidd

18. The Whispering House by Elizabeth Brooks

19. The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe

20. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

21. The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths

22. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

23. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

24. Vathek by William Beckford

25. The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Gothic Tales by Edgar Allen Poe

So, these are our top 25 picks when it comes to gothic novels. All of these are world-famous and have been read by generations of people.

The world of gothic fiction certainly takes us to a completely new and unknown place about which we have not even heard. The stories that we see in the movies look so realistic that we feel that we are ourselves a character in that story and playing a very important part alongside the lead actor.

The young generation is in love with the world of gothic novels and gothic literature. They feel so inspired by this world that they get themselves tattooed and also wear all sorts of funky clothes and jewellery to make themselves look more or less like their favourite gothic character.

So, how did you like this blog? We are sure that you will certainly pick up one or two titles for yourselves and give this upcoming genre a try. We are sure that you will feel very high emotions after reading these novels. So keep reading and we will be back with a new blog very soon.