Cover of Northanger Abbey
Gothic FictionHorrorHistorical Fiction

Northanger Abbey

by

  • 1818 first published
  • 251 pages
  • ★ 3.8 (48 ratings)
  • 1,013 editions
  • 🎧 8 h 12 min free audiobook
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Published in 1818, Northanger Abbey is a gothic fiction and horror novel by Jane Austen. It takes readers to England in 19 w. It deals with mate selection, cousins, young women and families.

Open Library readers give it an average of 3.8 out of 5 from 48 ratings, and 377 more have it on their want-to-read list. It has been published in 1,013 editions across 14 languages. On Project Gutenberg it was downloaded 13,488 times in the last 30 days.

At about 251 pages, most readers finish it in 4–5 hours. It is in the public domain, so you can read it free on Project Gutenberg or listen to the 8 h 12 min LibriVox audiobook.

About Northanger Abbey

Northanger Abbey is both a perfectly aimed literary parody and a withering satire of the commercial aspects of marriage among the English gentry at the turn of the nineteenth century. But most of all, it is the story of the initiation into life of its naïve but sweetly appealing heroine, Catherine Morland, a willing victim of the contemporary craze for Gothic literature who is determined to see herself as the heroine of a dark and thrilling romance. When Catherine is invited to Northanger Abbey, the grand though forbidding ancestral seat of her suitor, Henry Tilney, she finds herself embroiled in a real drama of misapprehension, mistreatment, and mortification, until common sense and humor—and a crucial clarification of Catherine’s financial status—puts all to right. Written in 1798 but not published until after Austen’s death in 1817, Northanger Abbey is characteristically clearheaded and strong, and infinitely subtle in its comedy.
Description from Open Library

Free audiobook

Northanger Abbey — LibriVox recording, 8 h 12 min in 31 sections.

Public-domain recording by volunteer readers. Listen online, download MP3s or stream from the Internet Archive.

Themes, setting & tropes

Genres

Setting

Era

  • 19 w

Subjects

  • Mate selection
  • Cousins
  • Young women
  • Horror tales
  • Families
  • Uncles
  • Appreciation
  • Children of the rich
  • English Love stories
  • Sisters
  • Courtship
  • Books and reading
  • Country homes
  • Rejection, Psychology
  • Fathers and daughters
  • Female friendship

Quick answers

Who wrote Northanger Abbey?

Northanger Abbey was written by Jane Austen and first published in 1818.

What genre is Northanger Abbey?

It is usually shelved as Gothic Fiction, Horror, Historical Fiction and Classic Love Stories.

How long is Northanger Abbey?

The median edition has 251 pages, about 4–5 hours of reading at 250 words per minute.

Is Northanger Abbey free to read?

Yes. It is in the public domain in the United States and can be read free on Project Gutenberg in EPUB, Kindle and HTML formats.

Is there a free audiobook of Northanger Abbey?

Yes — LibriVox volunteers recorded it; the recording runs 8 h 12 min.

What books are similar to Northanger Abbey?

Readers who like it often enjoy Wuthering Heights, The Woman in White and The Picture of Dorian Gray.

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