The Pilgrims

By Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and Kamila Shamsie

In the title story, a knight living alone in his isolated mountain fortress shows hospitality toward two pilgrims who appear from the mountains seeking shelter. Entreated to tell them of his sorrow, the knight unburdens himself and relates a tragic tale of love and loss. Resigned to the bitter fate that life has dealt him, the knight is unaware of the true nature of the two young people's pilgrimage, until a revelation transforms his understanding of his past and reveals the possibility of a new future. Four other short stories by Shelley are also included: "The Dream," "The False Rhyme," "The Invisible Girl," and "The Mourner."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hesperus Press Ltd.
• Release date: Apr 1, 2024
• ISBN: 9781843916307

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797–1851) was born in London, to her father the writer William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft. Mary's early life was unconventional and by the age of 16 she eloped with the then-married Percy Bysshe Shelley. Amongst their friends were Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Lord Byron, the latter of whom offered the challenge to Mary to write a ghost story which later became Frankenstein.

Reviews for The Pilgrims

[michael5rimmer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

For no good reason, I stalled for nearly a year part way through this book. Somehow, I couldn't get into it: started, stopped, restarted, stopped, restarted from the beginning, stopped - uhh! Then, picked it up towards the end of the year and polished it off in one sitting. I think it was me rather than Mary :-)It's a slim volume of only ninety-nine pages, containing five stories of a Gothic Romance persuasion. I don't think there's anything in here that breaks new ground, but they are (when you're in the right frame of mind!) interesting and engaging tales of their kind.My preferred stories in the collection are the last two, The Invisible Girl and The Mourner. Thunder, stormy seas, lost lovers and enduring loyalty. I'm sure there's something in the idea of a period TV mini-series of Shelley's Gothic romances.