1930
First Published
3.60
Average Rating
90
Number of Pages
In June 1927, the supreme Polish fantastist, Stefan Grabinski (1887-1936), took a rare excursion outside of his country in a planned Italian itinerary that was to include Rome, Naples, Capri and even Sicily. The first stop on his trip was Venice. Here he met a fellow Pole, Stefania Kalinowska. Little is known about his relationship with Kalinowska, but what is known is that Grabinski returned to Venice, after stopping in Rome, and spent the rest of his vacation with her in the city of canals, foot bridges and ornate architecture. Grabinski did admit to certain autobiographical features in “Passion,” which he began and finished in Venice, and it’s very probable that he saw, and investigated, someone who was the basis for one of his most memorable characters, Gina Vamparone. As to the romantic entanglements found in the story, it is up to the reader to imagine what the reality may have been in Grabinski’s life. Freed by the beautiful and languid atmosphere of Venice, “Passion” became Grabinski’s longest short prose work. The novelette would become the lead story in his Passion collection of five stories, published three years later and centered around theme of obsessive love. As is typical in Grabinski’s stories, strange elements enter into the lives of his characters, and “Passion” is no exception, making the story one of his most intriguing and haunting works. Born in London, translator Miroslaw Lipinski currently resides in New York City, where he is working on a massive edition of Grabinski’s stories for Centipede Press’ “Masters of the Weird Tale” series. His Grabinski translations have appeared in the collections: The Dark Domain, The Motion Demon, and On the Hill of Roses.
Avg Rating
3.60
Number of Ratings
48
5 STARS
21%
4 STARS
31%
3 STARS
35%
2 STARS
13%
1 STARS
0%
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Author
Stefan Grabinski
Author · 6 books
Stefan Grabiński (February 26, 1887 - November 12, 1936) was a Polish writer of horror fiction, sometimes called "the Polish Poe". Grabiński worked as teacher in Lwów and Przemyśl and is famous for his train stories collected in Demon ruchu (The Motion Demon). A number of stories were translated by Miroslaw Lipinski into English and published as The Dark Domain. In addition, some of his work has been adapted to film, such as Szamota's Mistress. Grabiński died of tuberculosis in 1936.
