“It was clear he wanted them all to be in some Gothic story of his creation, but would he really take it to that level?” –Michael Mullin, Gothic Revival
MICHAEL Mullin’s Gothic Revival is a cerebral and deliciously atmospheric thriller that skillfully intertwines homage to classic Gothic literature with a slow-burning, psychological narrative. Set in an isolated lakeside villa, the novel reunites five former MFA classmates—Chris, Anne, Fiona, Lauren, and Eric—for what begins as a nostalgic creative writing retreat. However, beneath the surface of literary fun lies a sinister current of manipulation, long-buried resentments, and emotional trauma. The retreat quickly devolves from an artistic gathering into a haunting confrontation with the past, as the characters grapple with eerie visions and unravelling relationships.
Gothic Revival draws inspiration from the famous summer of 1816 at Villa Diodati near Lake Geneva, where Lord Byron, Mary Shelley, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Polidori—along with Mary’s stepsister (and Byron’s brief lover), Claire Clairmont—were confined indoors due to the unusually rainy and stormy “Year Without a Summer” as it has come to be known.
To pass the time, Byron proposed a ghost story writing contest, which resulted in his poem “Darkness,” Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Polidori’s The Vampyre. Byron also wrote a fragment of a vampire horror story that was never completed, known as “Fragment of a Novel.” These works are pioneering benchmarks of Gothic horror and vampire literature, with some, like Shelley’s, also being considered early Science Fiction. Three great films about that summer at Villa Diodati are Ken Russell’s Gothic (1986), Ivan Passer’s Haunted Summer (1988), based on the book of the same name by Anne Edwards, and Haifaa al-Mansour’s Mary Shelley (2017).
Mullin’s modern interpretation draws both structural and thematic parallels to the Romantic era, while crafting a narrative rooted in the emotional and psychological complexities of contemporary life. The plot follows Eric, a charismatic and manipulative screenwriter, who orchestrates the retreat under the pretense of sparking literary inspiration. He challenges each guest to write a ghost story during their stay. Yet the true ghost stories emerge not from fiction but from memory, trauma, and regret.
As the characters begin to write and reflect, personal tensions and past betrayals rise to the surface. Mullin allows these dynamics to unfold gradually, using a shifting point-of-view structure to immerse the reader in each character’s internal world. Through this lens, the seemingly innocent reunion turns dark, revealing layers of emotional depth, long-held secrets, and psychological instability (the best kind for a Gothic thriller!).
One of the novel’s most compelling elements is its rich character development. Mullin mirrors each of his characters after the Romantic literary figures mentioned above, deepening the meta-literary resonance. Chris and Anne, a married couple struggling with emotional disconnection, evoke Percy and Mary Shelley. The free-spirited Fiona, a clairvoyant, echoes Claire Clairmont, while Lauren, a PhD in Victorian history, mimics the erudite nature of Polidori. Eric, the orchestrator of the retreat, channels Lord Byron: charming, enigmatic, and ultimately cruel. Or, as Lady Caroline Lamb called Byron, “Mad, bad, and dangerous to know!”
A humiliating graduation prank Eric once played on Chris casts a long shadow over the group, poisoning the dynamic and adding depth to the story’s psychological stakes.
The suspense in Gothic Revival is slow-building but effective. Mullin masterfully manipulates the narrative perspective to obscure and reveal just enough to keep the reader questioning what is real. Ghostly apparitions, mysterious noises, and a cryptic housekeeper all add to the atmosphere, but the true horror lies in the emotional and psychological toll on the characters.
The house itself becomes a character, an eerie, ivy-covered estate that seems to absorb the tension within its walls. Its dark hallways, reflective surfaces, and looming presence echo traditional gothic settings while anchoring the story firmly in the modern age. It’s Collinwood Mansion from TV’s Dark Shadows or the Usher House in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. It’s so good!
Rather than retell gothic classics, Mullin embeds his narrative with layered literary references. From Frankenstein to Dracula to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, these allusions enrich the reading experience, especially for literary enthusiasts like me. Assigning a character a Romantic-era counterpart adds a clever metafictional dimension to the story. Yes, some readers may find these references luxuriant without prior familiarity with the period or genre, though nothing is incoherent. The intertextuality is not simply decorative; it serves as a thematic foundation that explores creativity, identity, and the echoes of both personal and literary histories. This element is essential to the narrative, and I would argue it aligns precisely with Mullin’s textual and thematic goals for his novel.
Is that presumptuous to say? Maybe, but I stand by it.
The novel explores the price of ambition, the fragility of memory, and the emotional cost of artistic legacy. It feels intimate, tense, and
intellectually resonant, which is very much in the style of 19th-century Gothic literature.
The pacing of the novel is intentionally measured, which may make the first half seem slow to some readers. However, I promise you, if you appreciate psychological nuance and character depth you will find the buildup rewarding. The final act delivers a series of satisfying and unexpected twists, tying the narrative threads together in a way that honours both its gothic roots and its modern psychoanalytic sensibility.
The supernatural elements remain understated throughout, never fully explained, never entirely dismissed, leaving readers in a murky space between skepticism and belief, much like the characters themselves.
Michael Mullin’s Gothic Revival is a haunting meditation on memory, betrayal, and the darker sides of creativity. It delivers a rich, multilayered experience of what I call “emotional deconstruction.” Mullin has crafted a modern gothic story that respects the Gothic genre’s past while offering a compelling vision of its future; it’s moody, chilling, and introspective. Not only did I read it, but I got my dad a copy last XMAS! He loved it!
