Mysterious and Horrific Stories is a collection of Gothic tales by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. Although he is more widely known today for his novella Carmilla (1872), which influenced Bram Stoker´s Dracula (1897) and remains an important work of early vampire fiction, Le Fanu was also an influential figure in mid-nineteenth century Irish literature as a writer and editor for the Dublin University Magazine.Mysterious and Horrific Stories collects fifteen of Le Fanu´s finest works of short fiction from across his storied career. In The Fortunes of Sir Robert Ardagh, a man returns home after years abroad accompanied by a strange, shadowy companion. Under mysterious circumstances, Sir Robert has amassed a tremendous fortune and seems either unwilling or unable to reveal the truth behind his sudden rise to wealth. In Schalken the Painter, a young Dutch apprentice falls in love with his master´s young niece, the beautiful Rose Velderkaust. Fearful of angering the great painter Gerard Douw, whom he worries would reject a marriage proposal from a struggling artist, he keeps silent about his affections. When an older, wealthier man proposes to Rose, Douw consents to their marriage despite the man´s unsettling appearance. The Drunkard´s Dream is a tale of horror in which a man receives a powerful and terrifying vision of Hell.Alongside twelve more tales of ghosts and other supernatural forces, including An Authentic Narrative of a Haunted House and The Child That Went With the Fairies, these selections from Le Fanu´s body of work continue to entertain and astound nearly two centuries after they first appeared in print. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu´s Mysterious and Horrific Stories is a classic of Irish literature reimagined for modern readers.