The Haunted Cavern: A Caledonian Tale

by John Palmer Jr., Joel T. Terranova (Editor)

Young Eldred wants nothing more than to marry his beloved Jane. But Jane's father, the cruel Sir James Wallace, has other plans, intending to wed her to the fierce chieftain Donald instead. Donald, jealous of his rival, has Eldred seized and imprisoned in the dungeons of a haunted cavern, where a skeleton, a rusty dagger, and a mouldering manuscript will uncover long-hidden, deadly secrets and reveal the mysterious fate of Eldred's father, Lord Glencairn!
"The Haunted Cavern" (1795) was the first novel by John Palmer, Jun. (1776-1809), who published it at age nineteen.

Genres: Horror, Gothic, Classics

126 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1796

About the author

John Palmer Junior (born in 1776), son of stage actor John Palmer (1744-1798). English stage actor and author.

Reviews

[mark monday · Rating 2 out of 5]

John Palmer was 19 when he wrote this, over 200 years ago. I guess some things never change; teens will be teens. and so The Haunted Cavern is a breathlessly paced gothic adventure featuring two very pure teenagers in love, a lot of panting and blind idealism, some missing parents and some very mean adults, prison-caverns and bloody battlefields... and a string of very unfunny running gags featuring too-talkative types rattling on, boring the teens around them who have better things to do like deal with all of the drama in their lives so shut up already OMG! Palmer unfortunately gets quite maudlin and angsty, but hey he was 19. I was maudlin and angsty back then too, so all is forgiven. less forgivable is his need to puff up the story with tales within tales that don't do a whole lot except showcase various noble people getting beat up by life but eventually triumphing against all odds. in the end, I did enjoy Palmer's enthusiasm quite a bit. but overall this felt like it was written by someone who needed to spend less time mooning about in the castle turret reading Spencer and the Bible, and more time outside, jousting or whatever kids back then did to pass the time.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another one that no one has read or reviewed! This is really a shame. Hopefully in time these works will get some more attention; I certainly hope so. Okay, so this book is formulaic but for a first attempt and for an eighteen year old boy, it's amazing. Some of the language is a little flowery and sounds a bit pompous and comical in trying to sound poetical; but most of the story is beautifully written. I like that it's short and full of action and events and excitement; but despite being only 100 pages long, you'll know I was pleased to find enough space for several narratives, the hermit's being my favourite. It's never boring and my favourite characters were Andrew, Maud and the hermit (glad that the latter was not forgotten at the end). Really, I would give this a four and a half out of five. It's not a masterpiece, but it's great fun and worthy of the short amount of time it would take to read it - I myself read it in a day or two. I'm sure I will read it again at some point. Also, nice that it was set in Scotland!