{"product_id":"vampire-tales-9780198814658","title":"Vampire Tales","description":"\u003cstrong\u003e'The pang of the bite, the sudden spurting of blood, and the monstrous horror of the act.'\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis collection, edited by Nick Groom, explores the extraordinary variety and range of the vampire in English literature prior to the publication of Bram Stoker's \u003cem\u003eDracula \u003c\/em\u003e(1897): it includes classical and mediaeval vampires, Islamic and Caribbean vampires, aristocratic and penurious vampires, abject vampires and dandified vampires, erudite vampires and bestial vampires, invisible vampires and psychic vampires, and, of course, she-vampires. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhile \u003cem\u003eDracula\u003c\/em\u003e remains the touchstone not only of the English literary vampire but of the international vampire phenomenon in the cinema, on television, on the stage, in comics, in videogames, in music, and in fashion, readers may well be surprised to discover that there is an abundant tradition of vampire literature before Stoker's iconic novel. Moreover, these earlier vampires are often very different to those portrayed in \u003cem\u003eDracula\u003c\/em\u003e: vampires were atypical beings-at least until the advent of the Count. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlthough there are familiar names among the twenty-five pieces collected here such as Lord Byron, Edgar Allan Poe, Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Ambrose Bierce, there are also many less familiar writers, and so neglected classics from the United States, Australia, and, in translation, France and Germany, are also included. These encompass major cultural movements from Romantic Hellenism to late-Victorian Decadence, as well as engaging in the most pressing socio-political issues of the times: colonial slavery, sexual identity, class oppression, and the very nature of the human. Nick Groom's introduction and notes accordingly explain how these diverse vampires were characterized a variety of traits, themes, and images that constituted a \u003cem\u003eculture\u003c\/em\u003e of vampirism. These include-but are not confined to-bloodsucking, together with a morbid preoccupation with blood, vitality, and predation; the exercise of power through possessing and dominating others; the prevalence of dreams and deliria that casts doubt over lived reality; the blurring of boundaries between life and death; and the enthralling intensity of beauty. Neither were such aspects of vampirism necessarily confined to the supernatural realm of the undead: they could also, for example, be understood as medical or psychological conditions. It is, then, the aim of \u003cem\u003eVampire Tales\u003c\/em\u003e to reveal the extraordinary diversity of vampire literature in the nineteenth century. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Nick Groom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/10\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 688\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.76lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.49h x 5.68w x 2.24d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780198814658\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/01\/2026 pg. 105\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNick Groom, \u003cem\u003eProfessor of Literature in English, University of Macau\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eNick Groom is Professor of Literature in English at the University of Macau. He is best known for his work on Gothic literature, including \u003cem\u003eThe Vampire: A New History\u003c\/em\u003e (2020), \u003cem\u003eThe Gothic: A Very Short Introduction\u003c\/em\u003e (2012), and scholarly editions of \u003cem\u003eFrankenstein\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Italian\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Monk\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThe Castle of Otranto\u003c\/em\u003e for Oxford World's Classics.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Nick Groom \/ Hardcover \/ English","offer_id":49001646850205,"sku":"9780198814658","price":26.38,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_9e4b6b91-15a3-4c61-b609-aa5a344a6838.jpg?v=1791983471","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/vampire-tales-9780198814658","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}