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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.8
EAN num: 9780140437461
ISBN number: 0140437460
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 528
Printing Date: June 01, 2001
Publishing house: Penguin Classics
Release Date: June 05, 2001
Sale Popularity Level: 251895
Studio: Penguin Classics
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
In Uncle Silas, Sheridan Le Fanu's most celebrated novel, Maud Ruthyn, the young, naïve heroine, is plagued by Madame de la Rougierre from the moment the enigmatic older woman is hired as her governess. A liar, bully, and spy, when Madame leaves the house, she takes her dark secret with her. But when Maud is orphaned, she is sent to live with her Uncle Silas, her father's mysterious brother and a man with a scandalous-even murderous-past. And, once again, she encounters Madame, whose sinister role in Maud's destiny becomes all too clear.
With its subversion of reality and illusion, and its exploration of fear through the use of mystery and the supernatural, Uncle Silas shuns the conventions of traditional horror and delivers a chilling psychological thriller.
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Rated by buyers 
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Although Sheridan is most well-known for his ghost stories, this Gothic novel stays within the realms of reality while still creating a strong sense of suspense. The only problem is that the story takes too long to really progress forward. The story is told from the point of view of Maud, the niece of Uncle Silas, but there's only a small amount of significant plot involving her until she meets Uncle Silas. Once Silas actually appears (about 150 pages into the book) along with a host of other intriguing characters, the story finally starts to gain momentum. Although he is the grey sheep of the Ruthyn family because of his debts and questionable past, Silas as a decrepit, old man has apparently found religion and reformed himself. However, Silas' true motives are concealed until the shocking climax, creating much suspense as the reader tries to understand his seemingly benign actions. Bartram-Haugh, Silas' house and the surrounding areas, are portrayed as such an isolated and disreputable place that its mysteries add another layer to the suspense. The closer I got to the end, the more quickly I read through this book. You just have to be patient for the plot to build up. It's unfortunate that this excellent Gothic mystery has faded away into obscurity.
Rated by buyers -
It's hard for me to believe that this book has seventeen reviews. And that it still has such a high rating. Don't get me wrong, I loved every page of it. And the endnotes are wonderful in the Penguin edition I have. I'm also a big fan of Gothic literature, so I was surprised to find myself enjoying the book as much as I did. When it comes to the genre, I'm not ashamed to admit that I fall squarely in the Monk Lewis camp-- pile on the shocks, keep upping the ante, and don't stop 'till the credits are rolling.
Uncle Silas doesn't really provide any of that. The pace is deliberate, the plot is unsurprising, and there aren't any shocks to be found. But it works. Beautifully. Why? Largely because of Le Fanu's extraordinary prose. I continually found myself re-reading passages, and still quote some of my favorites to pleasantly surprised listeners.
The beauty of Le Fanu's novel, I think, is that he managed to follow the Ann Radcliffe model of the Gothic romance-- particularly with his inspired evocations of atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere-- without the anti-climactic 'revelations' that feel more like cheats to the modern reader. Uncle Silas isn't a phantasmagoric experience a la The Monk or Melmoth the Wanderer, but it is an underappreciated classic of Gothic literature, particularly in its remarkable sucess at turning a rather thin plot into an extended series of beautifully realized, but never overwrought, vignettes. And given the genre's reputation for poorly written overwrought-ness, that makes it a wonderful find.
Rated by buyers 
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As another reviewer said, you have to be patient to enjoy this, I think. Fairly long passages can go by seemingly without anything significant happening, but Le Fanu's writing style is very nice and definitely vintage so if you like the words you probably won't mind. It's probably true that the book could have been trimmed down by a hundred or do pages to focus on the darker, suspenseful aspects, but I don't think that melodrama was what Le Fanu was going for. He argued for it not to be classified as "sensationalist". That probably makes the book seem boring, but there are moments interspersed throughout that are very engaging and the entire latter part of the book is masterful in its anxiety and culminates in a great climax that will not disappoint. The book has sunny spots and characters, but a majority of the characters are dark and mysterious and a lot are unpleasant interactions for Maud.
Not exactly a gothic novel, and not all psychological thriller, this is a book I could see being disappointed in if you came into it thinking it was overtly either. But if you drop your expectations for what you want it to be because of what you heard it is, you probably won't regret it.
And everybody interested in seeing the original movie adaptation starring Jean Simmons should go over and vote for it to be released on DVD at [...] -- it only has 10 votes as I'm writing!
Rated by buyers 
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Having read the other reviews of this book I expected a thrilling gothic tale of mystery and suspense. What I got was somewhat disappointing. It certainly is an intriguing story with many interesting elements to it, not the least of which is LeFanu's masterful command of the English language. However, a few serious flaws stand out and detract seriously from the novel as a whole. One is the incredible amount of detail added. Over one hundred fifty pages elapse before Maud even enters Silas's dwelling. The conclusion is quite frightening, but to get to it one must slog through four hundred pages of building to the climax. Also it seems to me that there are far to many loose ends. For example, close to the conclusion of the novel Maud is traveling in a carriage when she hears a spectral voice whisper, "Beware the hand of Belisarius!" No explanation is given, nor does Belisarius appear during any portion of the book.
Despite these and other distractions, "Uncle Silas" has a truly shocking ending, worthy of Steven King. It should only be attempted by patient readers, but those who do read it through to the end will rarely forget it.
Rated by buyers -
I really liked this one. It's a definite page-turner with a very satisfying ending. I definitely recommend reading it if you're looking for a good mystery/thriller.
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