The Spirit of Rome

The Spirit of Rome (1906) is a memoir by Vernon Lee, published at the height of her career as a leading proponent of Aestheticism and scholar of the Italian Renaissance. It is a captivating meditation on her experiences in Rome, where she returns as an adult to find it as mysterious and magical as before. Lee was a principled feminist and committed pacifist who was virtually blacklisted by critics and publishers following her opposition to the First World War. However, interest in her works has increased over the past several decades, granting her the readership she deserves as a master of literary horror.

Format: Hardback
Length: 136 pages
Publication date: 15 February 2022
Publisher: West Margin Press

The Spirit of Rome (1906) is a captivating memoir by Vernon Lee, published at the height of her career as a leading proponent of Aestheticism and scholar of the Italian Renaissance. Raised in the city, she returns as an adult to find it as mysterious and magical as before, a place where any day could offer a chance to lose or discover oneself in history, art, or unparalleled beauty. A principled feminist and committed pacifist, Lee was virtually blacklisted by critics and publishers following her opposition to the First World War. However, through the efforts of dedicated scholars, interest in her works has increased over the past several decades, granting her the readership she deserves as a master of literary horror.

"I was brought up in Rome, from the age of twelve to that of seventeen, but did not return there for many years afterwards. I discovered it anew for myself, while knowing all its sites and its details; discovered, that is to say, its meaning to my thoughts and feelings." Vernon Lee's world is one where ghosts and humans walk together, often without taking notice. Although she is more widely known for her stories of supernatural horror, Lee was also a gifted art historian and travel writer. In these diary entries written over the course of a decade, she returns to the city of Rome, where she spent the formative years of her youth. Walking through villas and the Vatican, standing on cobblestone streets or in the hollow expanse of the Pantheon, she discovers herself anew in the same ancient places, filled with the ghosts of lost friends and lovers, of the woman she was long ago. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Vernon Lee's The Spirit of Rome is a must-have for fans of literary horror and history.

Dimension: 203 x 127 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781513135557