Authors | Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu (28 August 1814 – 7 February 1873) was an Irish writer of Gothic tales, mystery novels, and horror fiction. He was a leading ghost story writer of his time, central to the development of the genre in the Victorian era ... Read more

Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu (28 August 1814 – 7 February 1873) was an Irish writer of Gothic tales, mystery novels, and horror fiction. He was a leading ghost story writer of his time, central to the development of the genre in the Victorian era. M. R. James described Le Fanu as "absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories". Three of his best-known works are the locked-room mystery Uncle Silas, the lesbian vampire novella Carmilla, and the historical novel The House by the Churchyard.

Le Fanu worked in many genres but remains best known for his horror fiction. He was a meticulous craftsman and frequently reworked plots and ideas from his earlier writing in subsequent pieces. Many of his novels, for example, are expansions and refinements of earlier short stories. He specialised in tone and effect rather than "shock horror" and liked to leave important details unexplained and mysterious. He avoided overt supernatural effects: in most of his major works, the supernatural is strongly implied but a "natural" explanation is also possible. The demonic monkey in Green Tea could be a delusion of the story's protagonist, who is the only person to see it; in The Familiar, Captain Barton's death seems to be supernatural, but is not actually witnessed, and the ghostly owl may be a real bird. This technique influenced later horror artists, both in print and on film (see, for example, the film producer Val Lewton's principle of "indirect horror"). Though other writers have since chosen less subtle techniques, Le Fanu's finest tales, such as the vampire novella Carmilla and the short story Schalken the Painter, remain some of the most powerful in the genre. He had enormous influence on one of the 20th century's most important ghost story writers, M. R. James, and although his work fell out of favour in the early part of the 20th century, towards the end of the century interest in his work increased and remains comparatively strong.

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Books by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Best Ghost Stories of J. S. Le Fanu

Best Ghost Stories of J. S. Le Fanu: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Wylder's Hand: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Checkmate: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Tenants Of Malory A Novel

The Tenants Of Malory A Novel: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Essays On Political And Social Science ...

Essays On Political And Social Science ...: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 2

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 2: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Haunted Lives: A Novel

Haunted Lives: A Novel: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Familiar: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Uncle Silas: A Tale of Bartram-Haugh; Volume II

Uncle Silas: A Tale of Bartram-Haugh; Volume II: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

A Lost Name, VOL II of III

A Lost Name, VOL II of III: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 3-Including One Novel 'The House by the Churchyard, '

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 3-Including One Novel 'The House by the Churchyard, ': by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 4-Including One Novel, 'The Wyvern Mystery, ' One Nove

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 4-Including One Novel, 'The Wyvern Mystery, ' One Nove: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 5-Including One Novel, 'The Rose and the Key, ' One No

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 5-Including One Novel, 'The Rose and the Key, ' One No: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Purcell Papers, Volume 2...

The Purcell Papers, Volume 2...: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

A Debt of Honor

A Debt of Honor: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Purcell Papers Volume 1

The Purcell Papers Volume 1: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Cock and Anchor. Illus. by Brinsley Le Fanu

The Cock and Anchor. Illus. by Brinsley Le Fanu: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Guy Deverell, Volume 1

Guy Deverell, Volume 1: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

In a Glass Darkly

In a Glass Darkly: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Rose and Key

The Rose and Key: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Madam Crowl's Ghost and the Dead Sexton

Madam Crowl's Ghost and the Dead Sexton: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

An Account of Some Strange Disturbances in Aungier Street

An Account of Some Strange Disturbances in Aungier Street: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

An Adventure of Hardress Fitzgerald, a Royalist Captain

An Adventure of Hardress Fitzgerald, a Royalist Captain: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

An Authentic Narrative of a Haunted House

An Authentic Narrative of a Haunted House: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Billy Malowney's Taste of Love and Glory

Billy Malowney's Taste of Love and Glory: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Evil Guest: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 3

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 3: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Shamus O'Brien, the Bold Boy of Glingall

Shamus O'Brien, the Bold Boy of Glingall: by Joseph Sheridan 1814-1873 Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan 1814-1873 Le Fanu

Collected Works of Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Collected Works of Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Marie Antoinette, the Player Queen

Marie Antoinette, the Player Queen: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

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