The celebrated master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe brought his nightmare visions to vivid dramatic life in his classic stories. Now this Signet Classic edition gathers together fourteen of his darkest and richest tales, including "The Pit and the Pendulum," an unforgettable reimagining of Inquisition tortures; "The Tell-Tale Heart," which delves into the complex nature of a murderer's madness; and "The Fall of the House of Usher," his tour de force about a family doomed by an ancient curse. Poe, ever fascinated by the mysterious, pioneered the detective story, creating in "The Purloined Letter" and "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" a rational investigator with a poetic soul. Also featured here is Poe's only full-length novel, Narrative of A. Gordon Pym. An author who holds an important place in America's literary past, Edgar Allan Poe continues to influence and inspire others with the lush, vibrant style that is uniquely his - and that powerfully expresses the agitation of the human spirit.