Mysteries of Winterthurn. First Edition and Limited Edition, Signed by Author. Leather Bound Unknown Binding

My take on this last novel in Oates' Gothic trilogy - and Oates's self-proclaimed favourite of the three -diverges somewhat from the other four reviewers here. The other reviewers have covered well the aspects of the novel that reveal how disparagingly women were treated, and how the class-system in turn of the Twentieth Century America was so rigid so that one is compelled rather to call it a caste system, the social divisions are so strong, and the consequences of it so nearly unthinkable to the modern mind.But what intrigued me from the very start was the narrator, who obtrudes himself from the very beginning in an "Editor's Note." At first, he seems to be a commonplace citizen of Winterthurn in the 1880s, with similar prejudices and anachronistic judgements and, most importantly, employing the lush, seductive archaic language of the time. It is only at the beginning of the third and last mystery that he reveals that he is a modern chronicler (i.e. late 20th Century) yet still employing this archaic language and holding these prejudices that seem so foreign. Indeed, to the modern mind, he gets almost everything wrong - from his dismissal of "Iphiginia" and her poems, so obviously modelled on Emily Dickinson, to his verdict on the last mystery, the Jekyll and Hyde nature of which and the obvious logical culprit even the reviewers here seem to have missed.He's a self-proclaimed chronicler of factual events, supposedly relying on documents, yet assumes the omniscient perspective throughout the book. This contradiction is outrageously apparent in chapters such as "Quicksand" - probably my personal favourite of the book.And the language! How wonderful and esoteric for logophiles such as myself, yet employed in a rather tedious way - the prime example being the use of "withal" and its contradictory meanings of "moreover" and "nevertheless" - sometimes employed four or five times in a single page, causing the reader to pause slightly each time to twig, by context, which one of these two meanings this wily narrator is signifying!So what is a reader to make of all this? First, let me state here for the record that, contra Oates, I find the second novel in the trilogy, A Bloodsmoor Romance, to be the finest, most virtuosic of the three.But, in assessing the disjointed, paludal, well, mess of these three mysteries, the seemingly obtuse throwback of a narrator, and his luxuriant, archaic stylism, my eye wanders back to the Editor's Note at the start of it all and the last sentence of it:"Yet it were well for the contemporary reader to withhold judgment; and to reflect that our ancestors, though oft appearing less informed than ourselves, were perhaps far more sensitive, - nay, altogether more astute, in comprehending Evil."And, well - Who knows? - Perhaps they were.

This was a signed book in a beautiful leather cover. It was just as described by the seller. I am very happy with mypurchase.

A great story. Rambling and over wordy at times, in the Gothic tradition, but worth the read.

A fascinating twisty trio of mysteries by Joyce Carol Oates that turns the entire genre on its head. Don't think you know what's going on, except when you do, and even then, well... Are solutions what you really want?

I like postmodern stuff, but this was dreary. The brilliant detective is not too bright, the police are total idiots, and it hard to like any of the characters. As Twain says about Cooper, you dislike the bad people, are indifferent to the rest, and wish they would all get drowned together. Barth, Coover, Pynchon...at least they are fun to read.

Joyce Carol Oates...love the mystery and suspense in all of her books!

I'm a fan of Joyce Carol Oates' body of work, and especially love her mysteries and macabre stories. There's something unsettling about some of Ms. Oates' stories because as fantastic as some of the stories may be, there's an element of plausibility in them, reflecting the dark and base desires of ordinary mortals."Mysteries of Wiinterthurn" is one of my favorites of Ms. Oates' Gothic stories. It's not a quick read and requires some patience, but there's plenty here to keep the discerning reader happy. The protagonist here is Xavier Kilgarvan, a young detective who has to solve three cases, i.e. "The Virgin in the Rose-Bower", "The Devil's Half-Acre", and "The Blood-Stained Gown". If you're looking for a quick read and an obvious reveal, then this is not it, but those who appreciate elements of the mysterious and the supernatural with a bit of romance in it, will enjoy this.I was lucky to come across a signed first edition of "Mysteries of Winterthurn" published by The Franklin Library in 1984. It contains illustrations by Daniel Maffia, and is bound in genuine leather.

After several years, I took this up for a second reading, and personally feel it's Oates' best work. As another reviewer wrote, this is Gothic with teeth, and not for the faint of heart. The language is archaic and so is the social thinking. But I'm not so convinced that the 21st century is so far more enlightened than the Victorian mores expressed here, and that's what struck me. For instance, it's still very much unlikely that the poor are treated as fairly as the wealthy in the U.S. justice system. There's plenty of dark humor to enjoy, also, and the writing is superb.