As Paris is shaken by a spate of murderous robberies, the aristocratic Mademoiselle de Scuderi pens a poem to poke fun at the cowardly lovers who now fear to go out at night to see their mistresses. But when she receives an unexpected visit from a young man, who gives her a box of jewels with a note thanking her for supporting the robbers' cause, the elderly writer is plunged into a dangerous web of passion, intrigue and murder. First published in 1819 to great acclaim, and displaying all the author's trademark wit and ingenuity, E.T.A. Hoffmann's tale has inspired and delighted writers and readers ever since, and remains a benchmark for all modern crime novels.

This early work by E. T. A. Hoffmann was originally published in 1819. Born in Königsberg, East Prussia in 1776, Hoffmann's family were all jurists, and during his youth he was initially encouraged to pursue a career in law. However, in his late teens Hoffman became increasingly interested in literature and philosophy, and spent much of his time reading German classicists and attending lectures by, amongst others, Immanuel Kant. Hoffman went on to produce a great range of both literary and musical works. Probably Hoffman's most well-known story, produced in 1816, is 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King', due to the fact that - some seventy-six years later - it inspired Tchaikovsky's ballet The Nutcracker. In the same vein, his story 'The Sandman' provided both the inspiration for Léo Delibes's ballet Coppélia, and the basis for a highly influential essay by Sigmund Freud, called 'The Uncanny'. (Indeed, Freud referred to Hoffman as the "unrivalled master of the uncanny in literature.") Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions.

Set in Paris during King Louis the fourteenth's reign, E.T.A Hoffmann's 'Mademoiselle Scuderi' throws the reader into a city under siege from an organised group of thieves who rob citizens of their expensive jewellery. Aristocrat, Mademoiselle Scuderi, pens a poem mocking the men who now fear going out at night to see their mistresses but when an unexpected man visits her and delivers a box of jewellery, as thanks for supporting the thieves, Scuderi is plunged into a dangerous game of passion, crime, and murder. People who enjoyed Netflix’s adaptation of ‘Lupin’ shouldn’t hesitate to read Hoffmann's exciting crime thriller 'Mademoiselle Scuderi' E.T.A Hoffmann was a German author of fantasy, and gothic horror, and was highly influential on the Romantic Movement. He is perhaps best known for writing the novella 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King' which was the inspiration for Tchaikovsky's ballet 'The Nutcracker'.

A tale and a fascinating crime thriller of the times of Louis XIV

E. T. A. Hoffmann's novella, "Mademoiselle de Scudéri. A Tale from the Times of Louis XIV" ["Das Fräulein von Scuderi. Erzählung aus dem Zeitalter Ludwig des Vierzehnten"], was first published in 1819 in "Yearbook for 1820. Dedicated to Love and Friendship" ["Taschenbuch für das Jahr 1820. Der Liebe und Freundschaft gewidmet"]. It later was included in the third volume of the four-volume collection of novellas and fairytales that was published between 1819 and 1821 under the title "The Serapion Brethren" ["Die Serapionsbrüder"]. The 1819 edition was an immediate commercial and critical success and led to Hoffmann's becoming a popular and well-paid author (Feldges & Stadler 1986, 153). The novella still is widely regarded as one of Hoffmann's best, not only because of its exciting, suspenseful plot and interesting descriptions of life, places, and people in late 17th-century Paris but also because of the many different levels of interpretation that it allows (Feldges & Stadler 1986, 158-167; Kaiser 1988, 75).

This book brings together the author's interviews with many prominent figures in fantasy, horror, and science fiction to examine the traditions and extensions of the gothic mode of storytelling over the last 200 years and its contemporary influence on film and media.