Old castles, family secrets, and anxious anticipation will once again be at the center of readers' attention. Participants will discuss why 18th and 19th-century novels continue to frighten modern audiences, how gothic suspense originated, and what has changed in the genre from its early experiments to popular stories about monsters and deals with the devil. Gothic prose knows how to create anxiety long before the monster appears. A locked room, an old house, and a hint of a secret that the characters prefer to remain silent about are enough. At the book club meeting, participants will explore why these techniques, invented centuries ago, still work and capture readers' attention more than many modern horror stories. The conversation will begin with "The Castle of Otranto" by Horace Walpole - a book considered the starting point of the genre. It will be important to understand what amazed the 18th-century audience and why the combination of medieval settings, family secrets, and the supernatural proved to be so influential. Participants will also turn to "The Monk" by Matthew Gregory Lewis and "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley. The focus will be on temptation, guilt, responsibility for creation, and the boundary between man and monster. A separate plot is related to "The Sorrows of Satan" by Marie Corelli, where the familiar motif of the deal with the devil transforms into a story about the temptation of success and the price of desires. We share ideas on where to go in St. Petersburg this weekend.