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The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novels, 1960-1993
The late 1960s and early 1970s saw the birth of modern feminism, the sexual revolution, and strong growth in the mass-market publishing industry. Women made up a large part of the book market, and Gothic fiction became a higher popular staple. Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart and Phyllis Whitney emerged as prominent authors, while the standardized paperback Gothic sold in the millions. Pitched at middle-class women of all ages, Gothics paved the way for contemporary fiction categories such as urban fantasy, paranormal romance and vampire erotica. Though not as popular today as they once were, Gothic paperbacks retain a cult following--and the books themselves have become collectors' items. They were also the first popular novels to present strong heroines as agents of liberation and transformation. This work offers the missing chapters of the Gothic story, from the imaginative creations of Ann Radcliffe and the Bronte sisters to the bestseller 50 Shades of Grey.
191 pages, Paperback
First published September 18, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 13, 2020
Gothic romances are like concentrated drugs. Expert artisans of the genre know what elements appeal to their audience and they deliver it in abundance. You like beautiful people conspiring in spooky mansions? I’ll give you that—times a thousand!!! Some snobs may call this selling out, but I think of it as smart business. It’s a shame that this drug seems to have worn off, but there’s evidence, I hope, of a resurgence. Or, as this book concludes, maybe gothic romances never left. Not really.
While “Gothic Literature” remains well-studied in academia, it’s still Frankenstein and Wuthering Heights that anybody seems to care about. Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, maybe. Few are interested in Dark Shadows or the multitudes of mass-market gothic novels published during the Nixon era--but we do exist! And Lori A. Paige becomes our champion in chief with this book.
Through extensive research, Paige chronicles the origins of gothic literature and its appeal to audiences over time, from Ann Radcliffe to penny dreadfuls to bodice rippers, but she spends most of her time dissecting how all this relates to the gothic boom of the 1960s and ‘70s. In the title she suggests 1993 as the end date to the gothic era, but that is incredibly generous. She admits that by 1980, mass-market gothics were already dismissed as nostalgia, and nobody, then or ever, has equated these fast-paced, grocery store titles as works of great art.
This vast dismissal is something she challenges quite effectively, and she points to several great books as examples. She’s also willing to discuss publishing trends during that time, however, which includes some questionable tactics. Such as rebranding old mystery novels as “gothic” and using essentially the same cover art on thousands of titles. These books were short and cheaply printed by design, so readers could afford them easily, consume them quickly, and buy more.
She acknowledges that most gothics were formulaic—usually a retelling of Jane Eyre or Rebecca--and muses over why audiences demanded this. It’s not just that writers were tasked to churn out these books at a lightning pace. Readers became furious if the basic gothic ingredients were changed too much. This is something I’ve noticed in myself and I must say it’s puzzling. I can’t get enough soap opera drama within a spooky dwelling. When authors try jazzing up the formula, I get annoyed.
For those who rebuff gothics—and romances in general—as anti-feminist, she provides substantial evidence to the contrary. I particularly appreciate her note that most of the negative opinions of romance literature are either by men or women who’ve never read them.
Often Paige refers to the gothic wave as a collective cultural experience. Outside of the Dark Shadows TV show and its accompanied paperbacks, no single gothic book rose to outside significance during that era. Some authors were more popular than others, but most readers seemed to not care who the author was as long as the formula was there.
It’s the collected reading of dozens--if not hundreds--of these books that changed the literary landscape and paved the way for Stephen King’s more masculine horror and Kathleen Woodiwiss’ bestselling The Flame and the Flower, which is accredited as the first “bodice ripper.” Paige makes a good case that elements of the gothic romance wave have rippled across all genres of literature, and not just the obvious ones like Twilight and Fifty Shades.
I agree. Though it’s no longer in vogue to write these concentrated doses of macabre soap opera, modern writers—consciously or unconsciously—have learned a lot about atmosphere and the journey of a heroine by the lasting impact of a decade of gothic romances ruling the publishing world.
If you’re also someone who still loves reading dusty old paperbacks from yesteryear, this “academic” book is something that I think you’ll find just as juicy as gothic romances themselves.
While “Gothic Literature” remains well-studied in academia, it’s still Frankenstein and Wuthering Heights that anybody seems to care about. Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, maybe. Few are interested in Dark Shadows or the multitudes of mass-market gothic novels published during the Nixon era--but we do exist! And Lori A. Paige becomes our champion in chief with this book.
Through extensive research, Paige chronicles the origins of gothic literature and its appeal to audiences over time, from Ann Radcliffe to penny dreadfuls to bodice rippers, but she spends most of her time dissecting how all this relates to the gothic boom of the 1960s and ‘70s. In the title she suggests 1993 as the end date to the gothic era, but that is incredibly generous. She admits that by 1980, mass-market gothics were already dismissed as nostalgia, and nobody, then or ever, has equated these fast-paced, grocery store titles as works of great art.
This vast dismissal is something she challenges quite effectively, and she points to several great books as examples. She’s also willing to discuss publishing trends during that time, however, which includes some questionable tactics. Such as rebranding old mystery novels as “gothic” and using essentially the same cover art on thousands of titles. These books were short and cheaply printed by design, so readers could afford them easily, consume them quickly, and buy more.
She acknowledges that most gothics were formulaic—usually a retelling of Jane Eyre or Rebecca--and muses over why audiences demanded this. It’s not just that writers were tasked to churn out these books at a lightning pace. Readers became furious if the basic gothic ingredients were changed too much. This is something I’ve noticed in myself and I must say it’s puzzling. I can’t get enough soap opera drama within a spooky dwelling. When authors try jazzing up the formula, I get annoyed.
For those who rebuff gothics—and romances in general—as anti-feminist, she provides substantial evidence to the contrary. I particularly appreciate her note that most of the negative opinions of romance literature are either by men or women who’ve never read them.
Often Paige refers to the gothic wave as a collective cultural experience. Outside of the Dark Shadows TV show and its accompanied paperbacks, no single gothic book rose to outside significance during that era. Some authors were more popular than others, but most readers seemed to not care who the author was as long as the formula was there.
It’s the collected reading of dozens--if not hundreds--of these books that changed the literary landscape and paved the way for Stephen King’s more masculine horror and Kathleen Woodiwiss’ bestselling The Flame and the Flower, which is accredited as the first “bodice ripper.” Paige makes a good case that elements of the gothic romance wave have rippled across all genres of literature, and not just the obvious ones like Twilight and Fifty Shades.
I agree. Though it’s no longer in vogue to write these concentrated doses of macabre soap opera, modern writers—consciously or unconsciously—have learned a lot about atmosphere and the journey of a heroine by the lasting impact of a decade of gothic romances ruling the publishing world.
If you’re also someone who still loves reading dusty old paperbacks from yesteryear, this “academic” book is something that I think you’ll find just as juicy as gothic romances themselves.
February 8, 2024
06/2022
......This says that mass market gothic romances got more fun and crazy sometime in the 1970s, and I thought of Phyllis Whitney. Her Snowfire and Winter People were so detailed, violent but fun and tongue in cheek. I like how this book talks about the evolution of the hero, about Byron, the Brontes and the myth//ballad of the Demon Lover. ... .... Yes, Dark Shadows led to Twilight. But this book doesn't mention Anne Rice. I may have been young, but I remember the 80s, and Anne Rice paperbacks were everywhere.
......This says that mass market gothic romances got more fun and crazy sometime in the 1970s, and I thought of Phyllis Whitney. Her Snowfire and Winter People were so detailed, violent but fun and tongue in cheek. I like how this book talks about the evolution of the hero, about Byron, the Brontes and the myth//ballad of the Demon Lover. ... .... Yes, Dark Shadows led to Twilight. But this book doesn't mention Anne Rice. I may have been young, but I remember the 80s, and Anne Rice paperbacks were everywhere.
October 10, 2022
Je ne me rappelle plus où j'ai eu l'idée de me procurer ce livre (j'ai l'impression que c'est sur Twitter), mais c'était une idée de lecture vraiment excellente sur un genre que je connais très mal outre mes nombreuses lectures de Daphné du Maurier. C'est un essai qui me donne définitivement l'envie de m'y plonger et de relire Maurier et les nombreuses autres autrices qu'elle cite ou encore de découvrir la série Dark Shadows.
L'essai de Lori A. Paige fait aussi un énorme travail de déblayage des préjugés sur le genre littéraire, que ce soit de la critique littéraire et académique, mais aussi du côté féministe (incarné par l'article de Joanna Russ qui dépeint le genre comme profondément anti-féministe à l'aide d'observation un peu fallacieuse sur un corpus qui ne représentait pas vraiment la période qu'elle disait observer). C'est certainement un des critiques les plus intéressantes de cet ouvrage de démontrer en quoi le genre, sans être nécessairement hyper-féministe, n'est pas du tout anti-féministe, ni son public, ni le texte. En montrant comment le mariage n'est pas la finalité de ces romans, comme les femmes se sont emparés du genre, qu'on présente une héroïne de condition modeste, qui à son arrivée, arrive à résoudre l'intrigue, changer l'environnement dans laquelle elle évolue, prend possession du domaine (parfois à travers le mariage) et comment l'homme adopte un comportement beaucoup plus intéressant à la fin du livre. Sans être explicitement une thèse féministe (ni même un livre féministe je pourrais argumenter), la romance gothique s'élève en même temps que les mouvements de libération des femmes et plusieurs parallèles intéressants sont tracés (notamment en ce qui à trait à la représentation de la sexualité féminine qui se libère dans ces pages).
L'essai brosse aussi un portrait très intéressant des origines, et des héritières, de la romance gothique, des maisons d'édition qui ont porté les collections, comment elles se sont construites, ont évolués, ont fini. Il y a évidemment aussi une tentative de définition du genre, de ses thèmes, de ses structures narratives et des couvertures de livre (très bien représentées par la couverture de l'essai). Ces définitions sont suffisamment larges pour justement accepter un large corpus et une bonne déviance par rapport à ce qu'est le romance gothique et le gothique en général puisque bien que les inspirations sont souvent similaires, les directions entreprises sont nombreuses.
Une lecture que je conseille définitivement sur un pan de la littérature souvent méprisée, jamais enseignée (à ma connaissance), mais qui a pourtant eu un impact majeur sur la littérature en général.
L'essai de Lori A. Paige fait aussi un énorme travail de déblayage des préjugés sur le genre littéraire, que ce soit de la critique littéraire et académique, mais aussi du côté féministe (incarné par l'article de Joanna Russ qui dépeint le genre comme profondément anti-féministe à l'aide d'observation un peu fallacieuse sur un corpus qui ne représentait pas vraiment la période qu'elle disait observer). C'est certainement un des critiques les plus intéressantes de cet ouvrage de démontrer en quoi le genre, sans être nécessairement hyper-féministe, n'est pas du tout anti-féministe, ni son public, ni le texte. En montrant comment le mariage n'est pas la finalité de ces romans, comme les femmes se sont emparés du genre, qu'on présente une héroïne de condition modeste, qui à son arrivée, arrive à résoudre l'intrigue, changer l'environnement dans laquelle elle évolue, prend possession du domaine (parfois à travers le mariage) et comment l'homme adopte un comportement beaucoup plus intéressant à la fin du livre. Sans être explicitement une thèse féministe (ni même un livre féministe je pourrais argumenter), la romance gothique s'élève en même temps que les mouvements de libération des femmes et plusieurs parallèles intéressants sont tracés (notamment en ce qui à trait à la représentation de la sexualité féminine qui se libère dans ces pages).
L'essai brosse aussi un portrait très intéressant des origines, et des héritières, de la romance gothique, des maisons d'édition qui ont porté les collections, comment elles se sont construites, ont évolués, ont fini. Il y a évidemment aussi une tentative de définition du genre, de ses thèmes, de ses structures narratives et des couvertures de livre (très bien représentées par la couverture de l'essai). Ces définitions sont suffisamment larges pour justement accepter un large corpus et une bonne déviance par rapport à ce qu'est le romance gothique et le gothique en général puisque bien que les inspirations sont souvent similaires, les directions entreprises sont nombreuses.
Une lecture que je conseille définitivement sur un pan de la littérature souvent méprisée, jamais enseignée (à ma connaissance), mais qui a pourtant eu un impact majeur sur la littérature en général.
April 3, 2019
Gives the context of the gothic romances of the 60s and 70s, going all the way back to Castle of Otranto and ending very nearly in the present.
This was short and sweet: nothing earth-shattering, just a solid history of gothics, focusing on the huge market in the 60s and 70s. The author likes gothics but can see where the bad ones fall down, which, in my opinion, is better than someone who doesn't like the genre trying to write a critical history of it (which is actually the case!).
I didn't grow up reading gothics; it's only been lately that I've been getting into them, and then most the older ones (from the 19th century).
Recommend this for people studying the history of the genre, people researching romances in general, and people who liked Grady Hendrix's PAPERBACKS FROM HELL.
This was short and sweet: nothing earth-shattering, just a solid history of gothics, focusing on the huge market in the 60s and 70s. The author likes gothics but can see where the bad ones fall down, which, in my opinion, is better than someone who doesn't like the genre trying to write a critical history of it (which is actually the case!).
I didn't grow up reading gothics; it's only been lately that I've been getting into them, and then most the older ones (from the 19th century).
Recommend this for people studying the history of the genre, people researching romances in general, and people who liked Grady Hendrix's PAPERBACKS FROM HELL.
March 5, 2024
An excellent history and examination of the gothic romance. I wish it had delved into more recent gothics and how it is still changing and evolving, but I get that its focus is the pulp gothic romance publishing empire which ended in the early 1990s, though gothic romance didn't go away, just went quiet for the most part until more recent years.
Highly recommend!
Highly recommend!
December 4, 2018
Fans of gothic romance, and readers of romance in general, will appreciate this in-depth look at gothic romance, which experienced its heyday in the 1960s and 70s. The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novel, 1960-1993 is as enjoyable and satisfying to read as a gothic romance itself.
Lori Paige, professor of English at a small private college in Western Massachusetts, is a huge fan of this genre. In The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novel, 1960-1993, Paige focuses on the mass produced paperback novels of the gothic romance genre. She takes an academic approach to gothic romance and explores the roots, popularity, marketing, appeal, and demise of the genre. Known for its somewhat formulaic story-line; an independent heroine, sometimes an orphan, maybe a long-lost family member, possibly a new bride, goes to live in a castle or manor house, solves a mystery, encounters a sinister servant, and meets and falls in love with the hero who is always wealthy and powerful.
Unlike the romance genre in general, gothic romance rates low on the steamy scale for sex scenes. The stories are chaste, as the author points out. Intimacy is hinted at but never detailed. Paige describes the gothic romance formula as, “…sturdy, dependable, and instantly recognizable: a gloomy house or castle filled with sinister family members and frightening servants, a heroine the reader can identify with, a thread of romance that usually that usually goes no further than a few stolen kisses, and an abrupt declaration of love or a marriage proposal near the last page.”
Easily identified by their cover art, known as the “women running from houses”, the heroine is often pictured wearing a long white night gown, barefoot, long hair flowing, while she flees the dark castle (or house), pictured in the background, where a single light shines in an upper window. Publishers even used the “woman running from houses” cover art for contemporary stories about a modern, short-haired, blue jeans wearing heroine. The cover art was a huge part of the “branding” of gothic romance and fans of the genre love the cover art almost as much, or maybe more than the stories themselves. There are several websites and Pinterest boards are devoted to gothic romance cover art.
In her book, Paige traces the roots of gothic romance back to 18th century, specifically to Anne Radcliffe, author of The Mysteries of Udolpho, published in 1794. The second wave in gothics came when Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte was published in 1847 under the pen name of Currer Bell. Paige ties the popularity of gothics with spikes in the feminist movement. First wave feminism began around the same time that Bronte’s Jane Eyre was published, with the beginnings of the suffragette movement. The second wave of the feminist movement, began in 1963 with Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique, which was around the same time that the gothic romance mass market paperback, with its independent heroines, was beginning to gain popularity among women readers. The genre became so wildly successful and popular in the late 60s and into the 70s that publishers were struggling to meet the demands. Writers now known for other genres, such as Deane Koontz, wrote gothic romance novels under a pen name in the beginning of their writing careers.
The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novel, 1960-1993, also serves as a future reading list for fans of the genre. Throughout the book, Paige discusses key authors such as Victoria Holt, Dan Ross, (aka Marilyn Ross), and Phyllis Whitney to name a few.
The last gothic romance was published in 1993, but elements of the gothic live on in paranormal vampire romance like Twilight, mysteries, and even Christian fiction.
Lori Paige, professor of English at a small private college in Western Massachusetts, is a huge fan of this genre. In The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novel, 1960-1993, Paige focuses on the mass produced paperback novels of the gothic romance genre. She takes an academic approach to gothic romance and explores the roots, popularity, marketing, appeal, and demise of the genre. Known for its somewhat formulaic story-line; an independent heroine, sometimes an orphan, maybe a long-lost family member, possibly a new bride, goes to live in a castle or manor house, solves a mystery, encounters a sinister servant, and meets and falls in love with the hero who is always wealthy and powerful.
Unlike the romance genre in general, gothic romance rates low on the steamy scale for sex scenes. The stories are chaste, as the author points out. Intimacy is hinted at but never detailed. Paige describes the gothic romance formula as, “…sturdy, dependable, and instantly recognizable: a gloomy house or castle filled with sinister family members and frightening servants, a heroine the reader can identify with, a thread of romance that usually that usually goes no further than a few stolen kisses, and an abrupt declaration of love or a marriage proposal near the last page.”
Easily identified by their cover art, known as the “women running from houses”, the heroine is often pictured wearing a long white night gown, barefoot, long hair flowing, while she flees the dark castle (or house), pictured in the background, where a single light shines in an upper window. Publishers even used the “woman running from houses” cover art for contemporary stories about a modern, short-haired, blue jeans wearing heroine. The cover art was a huge part of the “branding” of gothic romance and fans of the genre love the cover art almost as much, or maybe more than the stories themselves. There are several websites and Pinterest boards are devoted to gothic romance cover art.
In her book, Paige traces the roots of gothic romance back to 18th century, specifically to Anne Radcliffe, author of The Mysteries of Udolpho, published in 1794. The second wave in gothics came when Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte was published in 1847 under the pen name of Currer Bell. Paige ties the popularity of gothics with spikes in the feminist movement. First wave feminism began around the same time that Bronte’s Jane Eyre was published, with the beginnings of the suffragette movement. The second wave of the feminist movement, began in 1963 with Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique, which was around the same time that the gothic romance mass market paperback, with its independent heroines, was beginning to gain popularity among women readers. The genre became so wildly successful and popular in the late 60s and into the 70s that publishers were struggling to meet the demands. Writers now known for other genres, such as Deane Koontz, wrote gothic romance novels under a pen name in the beginning of their writing careers.
The Gothic Romance Wave: A Critical History of the Mass Market Novel, 1960-1993, also serves as a future reading list for fans of the genre. Throughout the book, Paige discusses key authors such as Victoria Holt, Dan Ross, (aka Marilyn Ross), and Phyllis Whitney to name a few.
The last gothic romance was published in 1993, but elements of the gothic live on in paranormal vampire romance like Twilight, mysteries, and even Christian fiction.
May 19, 2024
An interesting book providing a good corrective to lots of literary snobs.
I found its analysis a little superficial and repetitive, though the parts tracing the history back to Walpole and Radcliffe and the Brontes is worthwhile.
I did find it odd that Mary Stewart, arguably the best writer of the moderns, is scarcely mentioned ... probably because her books are almost all set in the modern world with nary a castle in site (saving Chateau Valmy in Nine Coaches Waiting, though it's a French palais-chateau, not a turreted medieval edifice), and that modernism goes against the predominant grain of Paige's thesis.
I found its analysis a little superficial and repetitive, though the parts tracing the history back to Walpole and Radcliffe and the Brontes is worthwhile.
I did find it odd that Mary Stewart, arguably the best writer of the moderns, is scarcely mentioned ... probably because her books are almost all set in the modern world with nary a castle in site (saving Chateau Valmy in Nine Coaches Waiting, though it's a French palais-chateau, not a turreted medieval edifice), and that modernism goes against the predominant grain of Paige's thesis.
March 7, 2019
An excellent look at the structure and appeal of the gothic romance throughout the centuries. With a focus on the mid-twentieth century, Lori Paige writes in a comprehensive and readable style that makes this book an excellent primer into the genre.
October 19, 2018
Great little reference guide to the Gothic Romance wave! Some informative, some common knowledge, but it's great to get all the information in one place.
December 28, 2019
An excellent analysis of the evolution of romantic suspense.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews