Klosterheim. Or, The Masque. By the English Opium-Eater by DE QUINCEY, Thomas (1785-1859) - 1832

Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood, Edinburgh; and T. Cadell, Strand, London, 1832. Original Boards. Fine. First Edition of de Quincey's only novel, a Gothic romance set in Swabia during the Thirty Years' War. 12mo (173 x 98mm): [4]305,[3]pp (half-titles both precede and follow title page). Original brown paper-covered boards, later (but not recent) burgundy cloth spine with printed paper label, fore- and bottom edges untrimmed. Minor edge wear and rubbing, but tightly bound, clean, and fresh. A very handsome copy. Block, p. 58. First Gothics 111. Wolff 1785. Reprinted in 1898 as The Mystery of the Masque. De Quincey's only original novel, set in seventeenth-century Bavaria, a Gothic romance influenced by the works of Ann Radcliffe. "Throughout his literary life, De Quincey, best remembered for his Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, maintained strong ties with the Gothic romance. Klosterheim is a gothified history of the wars of religion when the soldiers of Lutheran princes ravaged Catholic cities along the Rhine. A sordid atmosphere of religious terror and persecution . . . hangs sullenly over the story. The 'masque' of the title refers to a mysterious being, half renegade and half champion of the people, who resides secretly in the city." (First Gothics) N. B. With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, carefully preserved in archival, removable mylar sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed. (Fine Editions Ltd is a member of the Independent Online Booksellers Association, and we subscribe to its codes of ethics.).