The Skeleton Count: Or, The Vampire Mistress

(Hardback)

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The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress (1828) is a penny dreadful by Elizabeth Caroline Grey. Although the novels authorship is frequently disputed, The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress is likely the first vampire tale to be written and published by a woman. Like most penny dreadfuls, the novel makes up for a lack in style with an abundance of horror and romance. When he had concluded the impious formula, an awful silence reigned in the turret, and he perceived the sheet gently agitated by the quivering of the limbs, which betokened returning animation. Then a shudder pervaded his frame in spite of himself, as he perceived the eyes of the corpse slowly open, and the dark dilated pupils fix their gaze on him with a strange and stolid glare. Desperate to live to eternity, Count Rodolph makes a dangerous deal with the devil. Invigorated with his newfound power, Rodolph reanimates the corpse of the beautiful Bertha, a fitting bride to accompany him in his quest for everlasting life. Will she be a loyal and irresistible vampire mistress, or will the Counts creation turn against him The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress is an entertaining tale of terror and the occult from a prolific author of nineteenth century penny dreadfuls. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Elizabeth Caroline Greys The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress is a classic penny dreadful reimagined for modern readers.

Author Bio

Elizabeth Caroline Grey (1798-1869) was an English novelist and one of the nineteenth century's leading author of penny dreadfuls. Although her life story is unclear--some scholars believe she never existed at all, or that her name was a pseudonym used by James Malcolm Rymer--Grey is traditionally said to have been the niece of a famous actress. She married a reporter known as Colonel Grey, taught in a London girls' school, and wrote fiction in her spare time. The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress (1828), her most famous novel, is notable for being the first vampire story written by a woman.