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The Demon Tower
They call her "The Demon Lera," a name her beauty Straight black hair, full sensuous lips, long aristocratic body. Opaque golden eyes. She is Countess Silvana Lera, mistress of an island fortress know as home Mrs. Stitch, the housekeeper, whose knowledge is worth more than her life.Benedetto, wily half brother to the Countess, who has two passionate obsessions.Zangari, the gypsy servant, whose eyes finally see one terror too many.Marc Antoine, son of the countess, accused madman and killer who in death wears the most unexpected mask of all.They are waiting for the honored guest, Melissa Summers, pretty, young, wealthy, vulnerable to love. HER WELCOME HAS BEEN PREPARED.
176 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
62 people want to read
About the author
Virginia Coffman
104 books41 followersVirginia Edith Coffman aka Jeanne Duval, Diana Saunders, Victor Cross, Ann Stanfield, Virginia C. Du Vaul, Kay Cameron.
A native of San Francisco, Coffman contributed movie reviews to the Oakland Tribune from 1933-40. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1938 and was a movie and television script writer for Columbia, RKO, and other Hollywood studios in her early writing career (1944-56). She had her first success with writing novels in 1959, when Crown Publishing decided to take a chance on Moura, and the novel was showcased by Library Journal. By the 1980s, Coffman was recognized as "the author largely responsible for setting off the Gothics craze of the 1960s, "earning her the reputation of "Queen of the Gothics."1
She quit her day job in Reno and became a full-time writer in 1965. While historical romance novels seldom find their way into the literary canon, Coffman, who was both prolific and dedicated, took her writing seriously. Her research for historical fiction was meticulous. She also drew upon personal experience as a world traveler when setting some of her novels in Hawaii, Paris, and other romantic locales. Several of her historical romances and gothic mystery novels were translated into other languages, and many have been published in large print and audio editions.
She was recognized by Who's Who of American Women and Who's Who in the West. She was a member of the Authors League of America and the Mystery Writers Guild of America. The Reno Gazette-Journal featured Virginia Coffman and her sister in a biographical story on April 4, 2002. In 2003, she donated a collection of her gothic mystery and historical romance novels to the University of Nevada, Reno Libraries.
A native of San Francisco, Coffman contributed movie reviews to the Oakland Tribune from 1933-40. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1938 and was a movie and television script writer for Columbia, RKO, and other Hollywood studios in her early writing career (1944-56). She had her first success with writing novels in 1959, when Crown Publishing decided to take a chance on Moura, and the novel was showcased by Library Journal. By the 1980s, Coffman was recognized as "the author largely responsible for setting off the Gothics craze of the 1960s, "earning her the reputation of "Queen of the Gothics."1
She quit her day job in Reno and became a full-time writer in 1965. While historical romance novels seldom find their way into the literary canon, Coffman, who was both prolific and dedicated, took her writing seriously. Her research for historical fiction was meticulous. She also drew upon personal experience as a world traveler when setting some of her novels in Hawaii, Paris, and other romantic locales. Several of her historical romances and gothic mystery novels were translated into other languages, and many have been published in large print and audio editions.
She was recognized by Who's Who of American Women and Who's Who in the West. She was a member of the Authors League of America and the Mystery Writers Guild of America. The Reno Gazette-Journal featured Virginia Coffman and her sister in a biographical story on April 4, 2002. In 2003, she donated a collection of her gothic mystery and historical romance novels to the University of Nevada, Reno Libraries.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 2, 2022
feckless idiot runs away from her Catholic boarding school and the prospect of an arranged marriage. to the Italian seaside and the Tower Lera she flees, having misadventures with a gypsy caravan and led on by an escaped convict in drag. out of the frying pan and into the arms of her cousin Silvana, nicknamed "The Demon" - which should have been a bit of a hint for our doltish heroine. a big part of the charm of this amusing trifle is realizing just how big an idiot poor Melissa turns out to be. there were certainly hints here and there, in her constant waffling, poor decision-making, and embarrassing inability to read the room. midway through the book, after she criticizes a seawall for holding back all of that lovely seafoam, it occurred to me that maybe the author intended her to be a parody of hysterical and judgmental Gothic heroines. I sure hope so! mainly because I enjoyed the breathless pacing of the book and its amusing play with gender identity, and I want what is a goofy 2 star read to actually be a clever 3 star read. but also because I just bought an entire Virginia Coffman lot off of ebay, solely on the strength of her Dark Palazzo, and I hope that wasn't a waste of money. because then I would be the idiot.
October 6, 2017
Though a scant 176 pages, this gothic slogged on endlessly with its microscopic font and 10 mph pacing. My previous read of Coffman's "The Beach House" was excellent, so I'm not sure how this one missed the mark.
July 2, 2018
It's trashy, but kept me entertaint. If you don't mind your gothic novels being a bit trashy, give this one a read. It's still fun.
Want to read
August 26, 2013A lot of gothic titles by this author available in kindle format from Amazon. This one included.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews