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Horror Hall of Fame Novellas
A Phantom Lover
My Dear Boutourline, Do you remember my telling you, one afternoon that you sat upon the hearth stool at Florence, the story of Mrs. Oke of Okehurst? You thought it a fantastic tale, you lover of fantastic things, and urged me to write it out at once, although I protested that, in such matters, to write is to exorcise, to dispel the charm; and that printers' ink chases away the ghosts that may pleasantly haunt us, as efficaciously as gallons of holy water. But if, as I suspect, you will now put down any charm that story may have possessed to the way in which we had been working ourselves up, that firelight evening, with all manner of fantastic stuff -- if, as I fear, the story of Mrs. Oke of Okehurst will strike you as stale and unprofitable -- the sight of this little book will serve at least to remind you, in the middle of your Russian summer, that there is such a season as winter, such a place as Florence and such a person as your friend, Vernon Lee, Kensington, July, 1886.
108 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1886
About the author
Vernon Lee
487 books130 followersViolet Paget, known by her pen name Vernon Lee, is remembered today primarily for her supernatural fiction and her work on aesthetics. An early follower of Walter Pater, she wrote over a dozen volumes of essays on art, music, and travel, poetry and contributed to The Yellow Book. An engaged feminist, she always dressed à la garçonne, and was a member of the Union of democratic control.
Her literary works explored the themes of haunting and possession. The English writer and translator, Montague Summers described Vernon Lee as "the greatest [...] of modern exponents of the supernatural in fiction."
She was responsible for introducing the concept of empathy (Einfühling) into the English language. Empathy was a key concept in Lee's psychological aesthetics which she developed on the basis of prior work by Theodor Lipps. Her response to aesthetics interpreted art as a mental and corporeal experience. This was a significant contribution to the philosophy of art which has been largely neglected.
"The Lie of the Land", in the voume "Limbo, and other Essays", has been one of the most influential essays on landscaping.
Additionally she wrote, along with her friend and colleague Henry James, critically about the relationship between the writer and his/her audience pioneering the concept of criticism and expanding the idea of critical assessment among all the arts as relating to an audience's (or her personal) response. She was a strong, though vexed, proponent of the Aesthetic movement, and after a lengthy written correspondence met the movement's effective leader, Walter Pater, in England in 1881, just after encountering his famous disciple Oscar Wilde. Her interpretation of the movement called for social action, setting her apart from both Wilde and Pater.
Her literary works explored the themes of haunting and possession. The English writer and translator, Montague Summers described Vernon Lee as "the greatest [...] of modern exponents of the supernatural in fiction."
She was responsible for introducing the concept of empathy (Einfühling) into the English language. Empathy was a key concept in Lee's psychological aesthetics which she developed on the basis of prior work by Theodor Lipps. Her response to aesthetics interpreted art as a mental and corporeal experience. This was a significant contribution to the philosophy of art which has been largely neglected.
"The Lie of the Land", in the voume "Limbo, and other Essays", has been one of the most influential essays on landscaping.
Additionally she wrote, along with her friend and colleague Henry James, critically about the relationship between the writer and his/her audience pioneering the concept of criticism and expanding the idea of critical assessment among all the arts as relating to an audience's (or her personal) response. She was a strong, though vexed, proponent of the Aesthetic movement, and after a lengthy written correspondence met the movement's effective leader, Walter Pater, in England in 1881, just after encountering his famous disciple Oscar Wilde. Her interpretation of the movement called for social action, setting her apart from both Wilde and Pater.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
October 31, 2019
What better way to celebrate Halloween than to finally write a review of one of the most astonishing ghost stories I have ever read?
Vernon Lee was the pseudonym of Violet Paget, a prolific writer who published novels, short stories and essays on topics including aesthetics, travel, music and the art of writing. A lesbian who, as her Wikipedia entry puts it, ‘always dressed à la garçonne’, she was a feminist, a pacifist, spoke four languages (and wrote in three), and is credited with introducing the concept of empathy – then a newly translated word – to the British Aesthetic Movement. Much of Lee’s work is concerned with ideas of beauty, art and aesthetic experience, but she is also known for her supernatural short fiction: ‘A Phantom Lover’, also known as ‘Oke of Okehurst’, was first published in 1886 and later formed part of the collection Hauntings (1890).
The story begins as many ghost stories do, with the narrator laying out an introduction to his tale, a strange thing he swears really happened to him. Yet the style is unusual, disconcerting. The narrator uses second person, apparently addressing another character, but as no character is evident, it can only be assumed he is talking directly to the reader. The introduction is related in a chatty manner and progresses as if not only conversation, but also physical interaction, is taking place between narrator and addressee.
The narrator is a portraitist, engaged by the Okehurst estate to paint William Oke and his wife Alice. (The character is reportedly based on John Singer Sargent, who painted a well-known portrait of Lee.) He arrives at Okehurst in a bad mood, convinced the place and its people will be dull. (William’s robust mediocrity infuriates him: ‘absolutely uninteresting from the crown of his head to the tip of his boots’.) Instead, he finds Okehurst surprisingly beautiful – ‘it seemed to me that I was being led through the palace of the Sleeping Beauty’ – and Alice fascinating, exquisite in a most unusual way.
It soon becomes clear that Alice is a singular woman in character as well as appearance. She is obsessed with an ancestor of hers, also named Alice, to whom she bears a strong physical resemblance. To the narrator she will speak only of this woman; she wears 17th-century clothes in order to emphasise the likeness. The narrator’s presence exacerbates this obsession, and William grows increasingly exasperated. The tension rises until it is unclear what is and isn’t real.
Lee's concepts of aesthetics, empathy and art were closely entwined: in ‘Beauty and Ugliness’ (1897) she argued that one's physical responses to a work of art, in themselves, constituted the experience of beauty; in subsequent years she came to understand such physical responses as expressions of empathy. ‘A Phantom Lover’ seems to be balanced between her earlier involvement in the Aesthetic and Decadent movements, and those later ideas, which expanded her definition of aesthetic experience beyond the idea of ‘art for art’s sake’. The unusual physical descriptions in the introduction predict her later focus on ‘bodily changes’; when the narrator dwells on the richness of Okehurst’s decor, I see echoes of the fervent, excessive style of the Decadents. The climax of ‘A Phantom Lover’ hinges on the idea that love can outlast a lover, and this too – this recognition of love as a broader, bigger force than the person feeling it – fits with Lee’s holistic approach to beauty and aesthetics.
It’s a fascinating work with many layers to pick apart, but that shouldn’t distract from the fact that it’s a wonderfully effective ghost story, or that it’s so modern and weird it feels like it was written yesterday. When I first found ‘A Phantom Lover’ I felt incredulous with joy at its brilliance: the remarkable narration, the decadent imagery, the vivid characters. A beautiful and eerie tale certain to induce, as the narrator himself puts it, a ‘delightful picturesque shudder’.
TinyLetter | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr
Vernon Lee was the pseudonym of Violet Paget, a prolific writer who published novels, short stories and essays on topics including aesthetics, travel, music and the art of writing. A lesbian who, as her Wikipedia entry puts it, ‘always dressed à la garçonne’, she was a feminist, a pacifist, spoke four languages (and wrote in three), and is credited with introducing the concept of empathy – then a newly translated word – to the British Aesthetic Movement. Much of Lee’s work is concerned with ideas of beauty, art and aesthetic experience, but she is also known for her supernatural short fiction: ‘A Phantom Lover’, also known as ‘Oke of Okehurst’, was first published in 1886 and later formed part of the collection Hauntings (1890).
The story begins as many ghost stories do, with the narrator laying out an introduction to his tale, a strange thing he swears really happened to him. Yet the style is unusual, disconcerting. The narrator uses second person, apparently addressing another character, but as no character is evident, it can only be assumed he is talking directly to the reader. The introduction is related in a chatty manner and progresses as if not only conversation, but also physical interaction, is taking place between narrator and addressee.
Yes; I began the picture, but it was never finished. I did the husband first. I wonder who has his likeness now? Help me to move these pictures away from the wall. Thanks. This is her portrait; a huge wreck. I don't suppose you can make much of it; it is merely blocked in, and seems quite mad.
The narrator is a portraitist, engaged by the Okehurst estate to paint William Oke and his wife Alice. (The character is reportedly based on John Singer Sargent, who painted a well-known portrait of Lee.) He arrives at Okehurst in a bad mood, convinced the place and its people will be dull. (William’s robust mediocrity infuriates him: ‘absolutely uninteresting from the crown of his head to the tip of his boots’.) Instead, he finds Okehurst surprisingly beautiful – ‘it seemed to me that I was being led through the palace of the Sleeping Beauty’ – and Alice fascinating, exquisite in a most unusual way.
It is conceivable, is it not, that once in a thousand years there may arise a combination of lines, a system of movements, an outline, a gesture, which is new, unprecedented, and yet hits off exactly our desires for beauty and rareness?
It soon becomes clear that Alice is a singular woman in character as well as appearance. She is obsessed with an ancestor of hers, also named Alice, to whom she bears a strong physical resemblance. To the narrator she will speak only of this woman; she wears 17th-century clothes in order to emphasise the likeness. The narrator’s presence exacerbates this obsession, and William grows increasingly exasperated. The tension rises until it is unclear what is and isn’t real.
There was something heady and oppressive in this beautiful room; something, I thought, almost repulsive in this exquisite woman. She seemed to me, suddenly, perverse and dangerous.
Lee's concepts of aesthetics, empathy and art were closely entwined: in ‘Beauty and Ugliness’ (1897) she argued that one's physical responses to a work of art, in themselves, constituted the experience of beauty; in subsequent years she came to understand such physical responses as expressions of empathy. ‘A Phantom Lover’ seems to be balanced between her earlier involvement in the Aesthetic and Decadent movements, and those later ideas, which expanded her definition of aesthetic experience beyond the idea of ‘art for art’s sake’. The unusual physical descriptions in the introduction predict her later focus on ‘bodily changes’; when the narrator dwells on the richness of Okehurst’s decor, I see echoes of the fervent, excessive style of the Decadents. The climax of ‘A Phantom Lover’ hinges on the idea that love can outlast a lover, and this too – this recognition of love as a broader, bigger force than the person feeling it – fits with Lee’s holistic approach to beauty and aesthetics.
It’s a fascinating work with many layers to pick apart, but that shouldn’t distract from the fact that it’s a wonderfully effective ghost story, or that it’s so modern and weird it feels like it was written yesterday. When I first found ‘A Phantom Lover’ I felt incredulous with joy at its brilliance: the remarkable narration, the decadent imagery, the vivid characters. A beautiful and eerie tale certain to induce, as the narrator himself puts it, a ‘delightful picturesque shudder’.
TinyLetter | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr
October 14, 2011
I made an audiobook recording of this story for LibriVox
http://librivox.org/a-phantom-lover-b...
Happy Halloween!
http://librivox.org/a-phantom-lover-b...
Happy Halloween!
December 11, 2020
Un buen relato corto pero predecible. Está incluido en Malos sueños, los mejores relatos de terror aparecidos en Valdemar 2
November 1, 2021
my class is in agreement: violet paget is the ultimate cool girl and alice (but not alice prime) is our fave manic pixie dream ghost
March 6, 2024
she's everything, he's just ken
February 21, 2023
Gives me Wuthering Heights vibes, but less annoying characters.
March 16, 2023
"To the health of the two Alice Okes, of the past and the present!"
"To the health of the poet, Mr. Christopher Lovelock, if his ghost be honouring this house with its presence!"
i believe in 19th century feminists writing about murder, ghosts and women driving men mad supremacy
"To the health of the poet, Mr. Christopher Lovelock, if his ghost be honouring this house with its presence!"
i believe in 19th century feminists writing about murder, ghosts and women driving men mad supremacy
February 18, 2023
4.5 stars
Love! Absolutely exquisite writing.
Love! Absolutely exquisite writing.
August 9, 2025
Interesting premise, however, slightly disappointing as the ending felt rushed.
August 6, 2024
'' One has heard of women and their lovers who have killed the husband; but a woman who combines with her husband to kill her lover, or at least the man who is in love with her—that is surely very singular. ''
omg that ending tho !
omg that ending tho !
October 11, 2015
the story was kind of a slow burn. I felt so bad for Mr. Oakes. His wife was such a hussy! the ending did surprise me as well. I would be interested in reading more by the author.
October 19, 2018
Recenzja wkrótce.
October 16, 2020
Gutenberg. October 16, 2020
October 20, 2024
⚠️🚨⚠️🚨⚠️🚨⚠️🚨
HIDDEN GEM ALERT!!! review if/when I can corral my stupid brain into submission, but tldr is that this is a deeelightful time and if you like a certain kind of Gothic camp, this is for you!! All hail small presses doing their good, weird work and putting out books like this.
HIDDEN GEM ALERT!!! review if/when I can corral my stupid brain into submission, but tldr is that this is a deeelightful time and if you like a certain kind of Gothic camp, this is for you!! All hail small presses doing their good, weird work and putting out books like this.
February 27, 2024
I really liked how the suspense was built over the course of the story but the end was a bit anticlimactic
November 8, 2024
you go, girl!
Read
March 16, 2025Simple but effective 👍
August 14, 2026
“I am too sceptical to believe in the impossibility of anything.”
An exquisitely carved piece of haunted furniture.
An exquisitely carved piece of haunted furniture.
November 20, 2025
I guess the ghosts were just the friends we made along the way
August 11, 2024
USED TO BE you could be commissioned to paint the portraits of a country gentleman and his eccentric wife without her queer obsession with past and future hauntings spiraling inevitability into crimes of passion, but now you can’t because of MRS. OKE!
October 26, 2012
Can be found free here on Gutenberg:
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8180
This is actually a short story more than a novella - not that I can be exact, given that it's an ebook and I completely forget the conversion that someone once posted on how many pages a KB adds up to. In any case this is a great start if you want to try some Vernon Lee. I'll have to sum it up as - does a lady love a phantom, or does a phantom love a lady? Or both? Or neither? Yes, it's one of those "what exactly is going on here" - only you can easily make your own mind up. And you might be able to answer yes to all of of the above questions.
A sample quote:
I'd quote more descriptions of the house because they made me fall a bit in love with it - but from that you can see that such descriptions do go on a bit. That would be the only down side to Lee.
http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8180
This is actually a short story more than a novella - not that I can be exact, given that it's an ebook and I completely forget the conversion that someone once posted on how many pages a KB adds up to. In any case this is a great start if you want to try some Vernon Lee. I'll have to sum it up as - does a lady love a phantom, or does a phantom love a lady? Or both? Or neither? Yes, it's one of those "what exactly is going on here" - only you can easily make your own mind up. And you might be able to answer yes to all of of the above questions.
A sample quote:
13% in "...Gradually the embers grew paler; the figures in the tapestry more shadowy; the columned and curtained bed loomed out vaguer; the room seemed to fill with greyness; and my eyes wandered to the mullioned bow-window, beyond whose panes, between whose heavy stonework, stretched a greyish-brown expanse of sore and sodden park grass, dotted with big oaks; while far off, behind a jagged fringe of dark Scotch firs, the wet sky was suffused with the blood-red of the sunset. Between the falling of the raindrops from the ivy outside, there came, fainter or sharper, the recurring bleating of the lambs separated from the mothers, a forlorn, quavering, eerie little cry."
I'd quote more descriptions of the house because they made me fall a bit in love with it - but from that you can see that such descriptions do go on a bit. That would be the only down side to Lee.
November 7, 2020
A Phantom Lover is the 4th book in the Horror Hall Of Fame series and did not disappoint.
The author, Vernon Lee AKA Violet Paget, was a lesbian art critic that lived from 1856-1935. Her works are often featured in Victorian supernatural collections but, as far as I am aware, I had never read anything by her before.
I obviously love hidden gems like this.
In this particular story, the author weaves a psychologically complex ghost story that leaves the ending with some room for interpretation.
The tale is about an artist that is commissioned by a man and his wife to come to the countryside and paint their portraits. The wife is the star of this drama, as she is convinced that she is the reincarnation of a long dead ancestor who was responsible for a murder and was deeply involved in a tragic love triangle.
Obviously, being a rather short story, I don't want to divulge more than that. Suffice to say, this was an intriguing story and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.
As with the other volumes in this series, this book also contains a bonus story entitled Faustus and Helena.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I hope that people will find these volumes as enjoyable as I have. The ability to discover new-to-me victorian authors has been a wonderful treat. These books are perfect for those who enjoy classic and victorian horror stories.
The author, Vernon Lee AKA Violet Paget, was a lesbian art critic that lived from 1856-1935. Her works are often featured in Victorian supernatural collections but, as far as I am aware, I had never read anything by her before.
I obviously love hidden gems like this.
In this particular story, the author weaves a psychologically complex ghost story that leaves the ending with some room for interpretation.
The tale is about an artist that is commissioned by a man and his wife to come to the countryside and paint their portraits. The wife is the star of this drama, as she is convinced that she is the reincarnation of a long dead ancestor who was responsible for a murder and was deeply involved in a tragic love triangle.
Obviously, being a rather short story, I don't want to divulge more than that. Suffice to say, this was an intriguing story and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.
As with the other volumes in this series, this book also contains a bonus story entitled Faustus and Helena.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I hope that people will find these volumes as enjoyable as I have. The ability to discover new-to-me victorian authors has been a wonderful treat. These books are perfect for those who enjoy classic and victorian horror stories.
December 5, 2022
Reread, 2022: Oh, this is so fun. I love where our narrator stands in the drama unfolding, how sympathetic is his/our shared fascination and how humorous is his emotional distance. I love the slow build of atmosphere with the coming autumn. I even like the ending more this time: the gothic lampshaded, the climax required, when our focus is always just on Alice.
Original review, 2020: A portrait artist recounts his efforts to paint an unlikely lady whose distant affect is broken only by her singular, unusual obsession. This reminds me of Clemence Housman's The Were-Wolf in that queer women--even if operating through male names or male characters--write the most convincing portrayals of women who fascinate despite that/because they're not "traditionally attractive," women who are strange, monstrous, unfriendly--and utterly compelling. The subject of this novella looks past the narrator, past the reader, and leads our gaze. She's heartless and smug and playful, and engages gothic tropes with a devious delight. The early-autumn atmosphere is similarly indulgent; the ending is overlarge and borderline silly, but that's also true of a lot of gothics and I forgive it. This was a great introduction to Lee/Paget's work, and I look forward to reading more.
Original review, 2020: A portrait artist recounts his efforts to paint an unlikely lady whose distant affect is broken only by her singular, unusual obsession. This reminds me of Clemence Housman's The Were-Wolf in that queer women--even if operating through male names or male characters--write the most convincing portrayals of women who fascinate despite that/because they're not "traditionally attractive," women who are strange, monstrous, unfriendly--and utterly compelling. The subject of this novella looks past the narrator, past the reader, and leads our gaze. She's heartless and smug and playful, and engages gothic tropes with a devious delight. The early-autumn atmosphere is similarly indulgent; the ending is overlarge and borderline silly, but that's also true of a lot of gothics and I forgive it. This was a great introduction to Lee/Paget's work, and I look forward to reading more.
April 15, 2019
3.2*
This, though not as good as her other stories, like DIONEA or AMOUR DURE, has a charm of its own. The supernatural theme slowly develops into one that brings Shakespeare's OTHELLO to the mind of the readers. The name LOVELOCK metaphorically signifies Alice's enduring obsession for a legendary figure. The author, once again, presents a strong female character that outshines her male counterpart. The story starts off in a smooth manner, but then the pace reduces to the point of dragging, and suddenly builds up to a strong, but short lived climax.
This, though not as good as her other stories, like DIONEA or AMOUR DURE, has a charm of its own. The supernatural theme slowly develops into one that brings Shakespeare's OTHELLO to the mind of the readers. The name LOVELOCK metaphorically signifies Alice's enduring obsession for a legendary figure. The author, once again, presents a strong female character that outshines her male counterpart. The story starts off in a smooth manner, but then the pace reduces to the point of dragging, and suddenly builds up to a strong, but short lived climax.
November 18, 2023
Entertaining listening 🔰😀
A will written fantasy ghost horror short story by Vernon Led about a painter fantasy with the woman 🚺 subject who looks like a two hundred year old painting of a great grandmother. I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for something different. Enjoy the adventure of reading 👓 or listening 🎶 to novels 👍🏰😃🏡2022
I listened to this as part of the Classic Tales of Horror - 500+ Stories. It was very enjoyable 2023
A will written fantasy ghost horror short story by Vernon Led about a painter fantasy with the woman 🚺 subject who looks like a two hundred year old painting of a great grandmother. I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for something different. Enjoy the adventure of reading 👓 or listening 🎶 to novels 👍🏰😃🏡2022
I listened to this as part of the Classic Tales of Horror - 500+ Stories. It was very enjoyable 2023
March 15, 2020
3.5 stars
A subdued and mysterious classic short story about an artist who arrives at a couple's secluded, ornate house to paint their portraits and becomes fascinated with the elusive wife and her family's history.
A subdued and mysterious classic short story about an artist who arrives at a couple's secluded, ornate house to paint their portraits and becomes fascinated with the elusive wife and her family's history.
November 16, 2020
A classic novella, slow and fairly predictable. I did feel sorry for Mr Oke, as he truly seemed to love his wife and she didn't give a damn. I love classic mysteries such as those written by Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers, Henry James etc, but this was a little too tedious for me.
November 10, 2020
It started off alright and then got stupid.
October 29, 2022
When a couple with two different but distinct mental disorders live in a haunted old family manor things cannot go well. I enjoyed this Victorian gothic novella.
December 7, 2025
victorian horror! unreliable narrators! unstable psyches! ghosts!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews