Started: March 1, 2024 | Finished: March 5. 2024
The Monk
A very enjoyable guilty pleasure and a true Gothic romp.
Reading a few reviews and blurbs, I very quickly came to the conclusion that The Monk would be a book that I would enjoy and so I opened the book with high expectations.
I am happy to note that my expectations were met and even exceeded..
I expected a novel in the Gothic tradition; something that would remind me of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This book was full of gothic elements such as catacombs, demons, witchcraft, murder, and the overall atmosphere of the book is Gothic..
I expected the book to be horrific and erotic. This book delivered on this with ghastly - wonderfully ghastly - depictions of ghosts, graves, demons and the Devil himself. The sexual parts are there too but no graphic descriptions - Lewis, after using his art as a catalyst for erotic thoughts, very wisely left the rest to the reader’s imagination.
The Monk is about Ambrosio, an Abbott, who, for his piety, is the toast of Madrid. Among his Order was a Novice named Rosario. Rosario has a shocking secret. From there the novel would feature murder, witchcraft, seductions, sex, rape, riots, the Inquisition and more.
Initially I was a bit bothered that there were two subplots in this novel that did not seem related to each other. The first involved Ambrosio the Monk and the second a gallant named Lorenzo, but Lewis would tie them neatly together in the end.
The only thing I fault is that, aside from Ambrosio and Rosario, all other characters seemed slightly one-dimensional. But that is not big flaw when compared to the solid strengths of the novel.
Yes, I did enjoy myself wonderfully reading The Monk. It is adventurous, naughty fun. I can’t believe they actually allowed this to be published in 1796, Lewis might have been worried for his own safety when they did since those times were significantly more intolerant than our own.
Bottom line, if you want Gothic elements and horror and you don’t mind a book that tackles classic religious tropes with a critical slant then The Monk is worth picking up.