The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories

This collection of short fiction retells European fairy tales, shifting their voice, erotic charge, and moral centre. The title story recasts Bluebeard through a young bride in a remote castle who discovers her husband's previous wives. Other pieces rework Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, Snow White, and vampire and werewolf lore, often from the woman's side of the bargain. Settings move between forest, circus, and decaying chateaux. Desire, appetite, and the price of curiosity drive the plots more than simple virtue rewarded. The book is a set of independent gothic tales, not a single novel and not a folklore study.

Quarter-bound in buckram blocked and printed with a design by Igor Karash. Dark red slipcase.