I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country; and at length found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher.

At the request of his good friend Roderick Usher, a visitor travels to the House of Usher where Roderick and his sister Madeline live. From the time the traveler first steps foot onto the Usher property, a mysterious and foreboding presence fills the air. Almost as if the house itself is alive.

Born in 1809, Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer and poet best known for his tales of mystery and macabre. His short stories have long been entrenched in American pop culture, and he is regarded as one of the greatest inspirations to the modern horror and mystery genres. His fictional C. Auguste Dupin stories, all included in this collection, are widely considered the first modern detective story, and these stories would become a foundational influence to Arthur Conan Doyle's famous detective Sherlock Holmes. Poe's notable works include The Fall of the House of Usher (1839), The Tell-Tale Heart (1843), The Black Cat (1843), and The Raven (1845), among many others. He died in 1849.

The following 13 tales and 13 poems are included:

TalesThe Fall of the House of Usher
The Tell-Tale Heart
the Black Cat
The Cask of Amontillado
The Pit and the Pendulum
The Masque of the Red Death
The Oval Portrait
The premature burial
A Descent into the Maelström
Ligeia

The C. Auguste Dupin MysteriesThe Murders in the Rue Morgue
The Mystery of Marie Rogêt
The Purloined Letter

PoemsThe Raven
Annabel Lee
Alone
A Dream Within a Dream
Dream-Land
Eldorado
The Sleeper
Lenore
The City in the Sea
To Helen
The Bells
The Valley of Unrest
To One in Paradise