What came to be known as the Northanger Horrid Novels were seven early works of Gothic fiction mentioned in Jane Austen's book Northanger Abbey. Originally these works were thought to have been fake, made up by Austen to parody contemporary Gothic novels. However, more recent research revealed that the books were entirely real, sparking new interest in them. A total of nine early Gothic novels are mentioned in the text of Northanger Abbey, although only the first seven have become known as the "Horrid Novels". This collection contains all nine works, including:
Castle of Wolfenbach (1793) by Eliza Parsons
The Necromancer; or, The Tale of the Black Forest (1794) by Ludwig Flammenberg
The Mysterious Warning, A German Tale (1796) by Eliza Parsons
Horrid Mysteries (1796) by the Marquis de Grosse
Clermont, A Tale (1798) by Regina Maria Roche
The Midnight Bell (1798) by Francis Lathom
Orphan of the Rhine (1798) by Eleanor Sleath
The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) by Ann Radcliffe
The Italian, or the Confessional of the Black Penitents (1797) by Ann Radcliffe