Sheridan Le Fanu Collected editions

Sheridan Le Fanu (1814 – 1873) was an Irish writer of Gothic fiction and mystery, often called the father of the Victorian ghost story. His novella Carmilla predates Dracula and remains one of the earliest and most influential works of vampire literature, notable for its atmosphere of suspense and its undertones of forbidden desire.

Le Fanu’s stories blend the supernatural with psychological depth, creating an unsettling ambiguity between reality and imagination. His mastery of mood and setting earned him a devoted readership in his lifetime and beyond.

From Uncle Silas to his ghostly short stories, Sheridan Le Fanu shaped the contours of 19th-century Gothic fiction, leaving a legacy that would echo through the works of Stoker, M.R. James, and countless others.