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

Uncle Silas Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

Uncle Silas Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

What Was It? Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

What Was It? Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Wicked Captain Walshawe, of Wauling Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

Wicked Captain Walshawe, of Wauling Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Mysterious Lodger Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

The Mysterious Lodger Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales, Complete Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales, Complete Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Guy Deverell Vol. II Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

Guy Deverell Vol. II Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu - Silas Marner Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu - Silas Marner Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu - The Cock and Anchor Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu - The Cock and Anchor Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu Author: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Fortunes of Colonel Torlogh O'brien [By J.S. Le Fanu]

The Fortunes of Colonel Torlogh O'brien [By J.S. Le Fanu]: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 1

The Wyvern Mystery: A Novel, Volume 1: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Classic Works of J. Sheridan Le Fanu - 18 Short Stories from One of the First and Greatest Writers of Ghost Stories (Fantasy a

The Classic Works of J. Sheridan Le Fanu - 18 Short Stories from One of the First and Greatest Writers of Ghost Stories (Fantasy a: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Rose And The Key, Etc.

The Rose And The Key, Etc.: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Ghost Stories and Tales of Mystery [By J.S. Le Fanu]

Ghost Stories and Tales of Mystery [By J.S. Le Fanu]: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Dickon the Devil

Dickon the Devil: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Jim Sulivan's Adventures in the Great Snow

Jim Sulivan's Adventures in the Great Snow: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Laura Silver Bell

Laura Silver Bell: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Ghost Stories of Chapelizod

Ghost Stories of Chapelizod: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Passage in the Secret History of an Irish Countess

Passage in the Secret History of an Irish Countess: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

A Lost Name, Vol I of III

A Lost Name, Vol I of III: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales (Volume III): The Haunted Baronet (1871)

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales (Volume III): The Haunted Baronet (1871): by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 1-Including Two Novels, 'The Haunted Baronet' and 'The

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 1-Including Two Novels, 'The Haunted Baronet' and 'The: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 2-Including One Novel, 'Uncle Silas, ' One Novelette,

The Collected Supernatural and Weird Fiction of J. Sheridan le Fanu: Volume 2-Including One Novel, 'Uncle Silas, ' One Novelette,: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

A Lost Name, Vol III of III

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

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Poems: by Joseph Sheridan 1814-1873 Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan 1814-1873 Le Fanu

The Odes of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows with Appropriate Music

The Odes of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows with Appropriate Music: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Invitation au crime

Invitation au crime: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales (Volume IV)

J. S. Le Fanu's Ghostly Tales (Volume IV): by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Last Heir of Castle Connor

The Last Heir of Castle Connor: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Carmilla: by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

Checkmate: By Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

By Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu