Dark Shadows by Marilyn Ross

Dark Shadows is a book series based on and inspired by the American gothic horror television series of the same name. Thirty three novels, including the novelization of House of Dark Shadows, were published by Paperback Library from 1966 to 1972. The novels were credited to Marilyn Ross, a pseudonym of W. E. D. Ross.

Many of the novels are based on popular gothic fiction, or popular monster or horror films.

About

The novels, with the exception of the House of Dark Shadows film novelization, do not share the continuity of the television series. House of Dark Shadows was an adaptation of the 1927 MGM film. Many novels follow a discernible formula:

1. Heroine arrives at, or is already living at, Collinwood in the first chapter
2. Heroine falls in love with Barnabas Collins not realizing he is a vampire
3. Heroine experiences a supernatural threat requiring Barnabas to rescue her
4. Heroine discovers or suspects Barnabas is a vampire but she remains smitten by him
5. Barnabas departs rather than risk poisoning the heroine's beauty with his vampiric curse

An unresolved plot featured in both the television and novel series was the question of Victoria Winters' origin. Ross planned to reveal Victoria as Barnabas' long-lost daughter, conceived in the 1940s when Barnabas was temporarily free of the vampiric curse. Winters' biological mother, who died young, would be revealed as a friend of Elizabeth Collins Stoddard. When actress Alexandra Moltke left the television series in 1968, the rights holders instructed Ross to remove the Winters from future novels.^[1]

Many printings feature production stills from the television series as the book cover. The stills chosen have little to do with the novel's plot.

Novels

No.	Title	Release date	Heroine	Notes
1	Dark Shadows	December 1966	Victoria Winters	Partial re-telling of Victoria Winters's arrival in Collinsport.
2	Victoria Winters	March 1967
3	Strangers at Collins House	September 1967
4	The Mystery of Collinwood	January 1968
5	The Curse of Collinwood	May 1968
6	Barnabas Collins	November 1968	Margaret Collins	First book to feature Barnabas Collins.
7	The Secret of Barnabas Collins	January 1969	Lady Clare Duncan
8	The Demon of Barnabas Collins	April 1969	Rita Glenn	Barnabas depicted as heroic, following changes made by the television series.
9	The Foe of Barnabas Collins	July 1969	Paula Collins Jennings
10	The Phantom and Barnabas Collins	September 1969	Maggie Evans
11	Barnabas Collins vs. the Warlock	October 1969		Based on Henry James' novella The Turn of the Screw.
12	The Peril of Barnabas Collins	November 1969	Diana Hastings
13	Barnabas Collins and the Mysterious Ghost	January 1970	Diana Samson
14	Barnabas Collins and Quentin's Demon	February 1970	Lara Balfour	Introduces Quentin Collins.
15	Barnabas Collins and the Gypsy Witch	March 1970	Roxanna Collins
16	Barnabas, Quentin and the Mummy's Curse	April 1970	Maggie Evans	Based on scenarios prepared for the television series that were never filmed.
17	Barnabas, Quentin and the Avenging Ghost	May 1970	Carolyn Stoddard
18	Barnabas, Quentin and the Nightmare Assassin	June 1970
19	Barnabas, Quentin and the Crystal Coffin	July 1970	Betty Ward	Based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story The Premature Burial.
20	Barnabas, Quentin and the Witch's Curse	August 1970	Anita Burgess
21	Barnabas, Quentin and the Haunted Cave	September 1970	Harriet Turnbridge
22	Barnabas, Quentin and the Frightened Bride	October 1970	Ann Hayward
	House of Dark Shadows		Maggie Evans	Film novelization based on early drafts of the script.
23	Barnabas, Quentin and the Scorpio Curse	November 1970	Diana Collins
24	Barnabas, Quentin and the Serpent	December 1970	Irma Collins
25	Barnabas, Quentin and the Magic Potion	January 1971	Carolyn Stoddard	Changes to Quentin Collins' depiction following changes made by the television series.
26	Barnabas, Quentin and the Body Snatchers	February 1971	Marjorie Gray	Based on Jack Finney's The Body Snatchers.
27	Barnabas, Quentin and Dr. Jekyll's Son	April 1971	Emily Collins	Based on Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
28	Barnabas, Quentin and the Grave Robbers	June 1971	Paula Sullivan	Published after the television series was cancelled.
29	Barnabas, Quentin and the Sea Ghost	August 1971	Norah Bliss
30	Barnabas, Quentin and the Mad Magician	October 1971	Carolyn Stoddard
31	Barnabas, Quentin and the Hidden Tomb	December 1971	Ellen Drury
32	Barnabas, Quentin and the Vampire Beauty	March 1972	Adele Marriot