the louver’s Reviews > The Virgin of the Seven Daggers: And Other Stories > Status Update

“Marsyas in Flanders”: not your typical vernon lee story. It actually reminded me a little of M.R. James’ short work, but much more sinister and creepy. loved.

“The Doll”: the shortest story in this collection but probably the most powerful. witchy, gothic, but also so, so touching lee was so ahead of her time with her subjects. i can’t believe this isn’t a more well-known feminist piece of literature.

“The Virgin of the Seven Daggers”: not her best honestly. i appreciate the stark difference in topic from her other stories, but it felt a tad too fable-esque for my liking. i found the background info in the notes regarding lee’s conception of the story really interesting, though.

“The Legend of Madame Krasinska”: really liked this one. kind of reminded of A Christmas Carol.

“A Wicked Voice”: probably the weakest story so far, but i still enjoyed it. though i like its theme a lot more than the story itself.

“Oke of Okehurst; or, the Phantom Lover”: so fucking good oh my god. with every story, i’m astounded that lee isn’t a more celebrated gothic writer. her work is GENIUS. so entertaining and psychological, with some sharp, sharp prose. her ability to weave such a well-rounded, complex narrative into a couple of pages is just astonishing. i’m so happy i found out about her.

“It was quite wonderful to watch the exquisite, exotic creature in one of these moods, with the distant look in her grey eyes and the absent-looking smile in her thin cheeks, talking as if she had intimately known these people of the seventeenth century…as she might of her most intimate friends.”


Alice Oke is so me

“Dionea”: really into vernon lee’s penchant for writing these weird, ominous slightly evil women. this was such fun.

“Winthrop’s Adventure”: overall not as well-structured as the last one, a little underwhelming, and tonally all over the place, but vernon lee’s prose and her intricate description of these decaying, gothic places are so enjoyable to read.

“Amour Dure”: probably one of the best short stories i have ever read, wow!!! this is my introduction to vernon lee and if the rest of her writing is anything like this, then we’re going to get alone rather well. a dark, delicious descent into madness, an incredible amount of character work worked into a tight 30 pages, a fiery villainess whose evil extends beyond the grave. a million stars.