The Sand-man and Other Stories brings together some of E.T.A. Hoffmann's most influential tales, where the fantastic and the uncanny intersect with psychological depth. The central story, The Sandman, follows Nathanael, a young man haunted since childhood by a terrifying figure associated with the legend of the Sandman. As an adult, he becomes obsessed with the mysterious Coppola, a lens-seller whom he believes to be the same menacing figure. His ...

'Weird Tales Volume 2' (1885) was written by famous German Romantic author E.T.A. Hoffmann. Included in this second and final volume of short stories are: 'The Doge and Dogess', 'Master Martin the Cooper,' 'Mademoiselle de Scudéri,' 'Gambler's Luck,' 'Master Johannes Wacht,' and a bibliographic essay from the translator entitled, 'Biographical Notes.' These classic short stories are perfect for fans of horror and fantasy fiction and the authors H. P. Lovecraft and Neil Gaiman.

'The Serapion Brethren' is the name of a literary and social circle created in Berlin in 1818 by the German romantic writer E. T. A. Hoffmann and his friends.'The Serapion Brethren' is also the name of a four-volume collection of Hoffmann's novellas and fairy tales that appeared in 1819, 1820, and 1821.Volume 2 includes the stories: 'The Life of a Well-known Character', 'Albertine's wooers', 'The Uncanny Guest', 'Mademoiselle Scuderi', 'Gamblers', 'Fortune', 'Signor Formica...

'The Elementary Spirit' (1844) was written by the German Romantic author E. T. A. Hoffmann, most famous for his novella 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King' (1816) which inspired Tchaikovsky's 'The Nutcracker'.When Prussian lieutenant, colonel Albert von B. rides from Liège to Aachen, a chance encounter with Paul Talkebarth leads him to a mysterious country house where his best friend lies ill. But not everything or everyone are as they seem, and beset by strange dreams and appariti...

'The Serapion Brethren' is the name of a literary and social circle created in Berlin in 1818 by the German romantic writer E. T. A. Hoffmann and his friends. 'The Serapion Brethren' is also the name of a four-volume collection of Hoffmann's novellas and fairy tales that appeared in 1819, 1820, and 1821.Volume 1 includes the stories: 'The Story of Serapion', 'An Interrupted Cadence', 'The Poet and the Composer', 'A Fragment of the Lives of Three Friends', 'The Mines of Falun', 'Nut...

As Paris is shaken by a spate of murderous robberies, the aristocratic Mademoiselle de Scudéri 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 ...

Tomcat Murr is a loveable, self-taught animal who has written his own autobiography. But a printer's error causes his story to be accidentally mixed and spliced with a book about the composer Johannes Kreisler. As the two versions break off and alternate at dramatic moments, two wildly different characters emerge from the confusion - Murr, the confident scholar, lover, carouser and brawler, and the moody, hypochondriac genius Kreisler. In his exuberant and bizarre novel, Hoffmann brilliant...

E.T.A. Hoffmann's 'The Devil's Elixir' is a gothic, horror-fantasy novel inspired by Matthew Gregory Lewis's novel 'The Monk'.Medardus is the son of a sinner and is raised in a monastery to atone for his father's past. When Medardus succumbs to temptation, he is dragged into a deadly mystery that sees him travel to Rome, pursued by his murderous lookalike.At the Vatican in Rome, the monk's only hope for salvation is the beautiful Aurelie but in order to finally discover the...

'The Jesuits' Church in G' (1844) was written by the German Romantic author E. T. A. Hoffmann, most famous for his novella 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King' (1816) which inspired Tchaikovsky's ballet 'The Nutcracker'.The story first appeared in the 'Night Pieces' collection, published in 1816 by The Georg Reimer publishing house in Berlin.Taken "from the papers of a traveling enthusiast', it tells the story of the creative power of the visual artist Berthold. This classic...

The Devil's Elixirs is a macabre masterpiece of German literature, and is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the Romantic movement, or the genres of fantasy and horror which it spawned. The son of a heinous sinner, Medardus is brought up in a monastery to atone for his father's wicked ways. However, after succumbing to temptation, Medardus himself is lured into a life of sin. A labyrinthine plot sees him embarking on a fantastical journey into the world, meeting his doppelg...

E. T. A. Hoffmann is seen as a pioneer of both Romanticism and fantasy literature, and his novella, Mademoiselle de Scudéri: A Tale from the Times of Louis XIV is often cited as the first ever detective story. Hoffman's 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 d...

The Sandman (Der Sandmann): One of Hoffmann's most famous tales, "The Sandman" tells the story of Nathanael, a young man who is haunted by memories of a sinister figure named Coppelius, who he believes to be the Sandman of folklore. The tale explores themes of obsession, madness, and the blurring line between reality and illusion.Councillor Krespel (Rat Krespel): This story revolves around the eccentric musician Councillor Krespel and his mysterious relationship with a beautiful, reclusive...