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Ligeia is another gothic masterpiece by Poe. He paints a picture of a man (our narrator) who falls in love and marries a beautiful woman named Ligeia, who is extraordinarily beautiful but in a different way. She is more of the gothic nature, pale, with long black hair and big black eyes. He is very much in love with her when she mysteriously falls ill. On her deathbed, she makes her husband read a poem she wrote that curses the tragedy that is her life. This poem is one of Poe’s more interesting ones, as it’s about a theatre full of angels who watch mimes on stage. Then a creature comes in and devours all the mimes, the Conqueror Worm. It’s entitled “Man�. So many layers of meaning within this story and especially the poem, made me hooked into the story. Eventually the narrator marries again but finds out the woman doesn’t love him. She too, falls mysteriously ill and eventually dies. What happens next can only be construed as a truly, horrific, typical Poe tale in gothic fashion, right down to the gothic house the narrator bought, and the room that the couple spend their honeymoon in. Much like Poe’s other works, the setting is a big part of the story and he does an excellent job detailing its dark contours. I loved the story and had not heard of it until I bought the complete works of Edgar Allen Poe, and have to admit I am tickled pink with each new grotesque story and poem I read. A must for any Poe fan.