Read Me With the Gas Lamp On Trivia Quiz

Answer: 'Dracula' (Bram Stoker)

When Jonathan Harker arrived in the Carpathian Mountains, he should have guessed that something was wrong. The Transylvanian locals would cross themselves at the mention of Dracula's name and as he set off on his journey towards the castle, they offered him crucifixes and other gifts to guard against the evil eye. Harker was travelling on a coach when he reached the place where he would meet the Count's personal driver.

The coach driver and the other passengers wanted him to travel onward to the town and return another night.

Answer: Griffin

Griffin had conducted research into optics, the study of light. He had found a way to alter the effect light had on his body. Light would not be reflected or absorbed, therefore making him invisible. Although he was successful, Griffin was unable to turn himself back. He wore gloves and bandages so as not to cause alarm, but as the scientist's circumstances took a downwards turn, he began to embrace his invisibility.

A griffin is also a mythical creature that is half-lion and half-eagle.

Answer: Robert Louis Stevenson

Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson published 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' in 1886. In the story, Utterson was concerned about his scientist friend, Dr Jekyll. Originally, he believed that Jekyll was being blackmailed by the evil Mr Hyde, but eventually it became clear that both characters were the same man. Jekyll had created a potion that brought out the darker side of his appearance and his personality.

He realised that he needed to stop taking the potion, but by then it was too late: Jekyll had started to transform involuntarily.

Answer: Mars

'The War of the Worlds' by H.G. Wells was published as a novel in 1898, though it had been serialised the year before. Armed with heat rays, the Martians descended on England and began wreaking havoc. Earth weapons seemed useless against the superior technology of the invaders.

The invasion didn't quite go to plan, however. The Martians (with their remarkable advances) seemed to have forgotten about the effects of bacteria.

Answer: Yellow

'The Yellow Wallpaper' first appeared in 'The New England Magazine' in 1892. The narrator had been prescribed a 'rest cure' to combat her mental illness, which involved as little stimulation as possible. She was confined to her new bedroom with nothing to do but stare at the wallpaper.

As time passed, she became more and more convinced that there was a woman trapped within the wallpaper who needed to be set free.

Answer: Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' was published to immediate public outcry in 1890. Dorian Gray was inspired by Lord Henry Wotton's hedonism. When Hallward's painting was completed, Gray wished that the painting would age instead of him. When he realised that his wish had been granted, Gray pursued a libertine lifestyle, causing the portrait to age and decay.

Answer: H.G. Wells

In 'The Time Machine', an unnamed inventor had created a machine that enabled its user to move through time. The narrator recounted a journey he had taken to the year 802,701. He saw first-hand the bleak result of human evolution. The novella was published in 1895 by H.G. Wells and was the first occurrence of the phrase 'time machine' being used to refer to a vehicle that could move through the fourth dimension.

Answer: Africa

Upon his 25th birthday, Leo Vincey was informed that he had mysterious heritage somewhere in Africa. Vincey and his guardian, Horace Holly, came across the Amahagger people, who had been told of their arrival by their queen (referred to as 'She-who-must-be-obeyed'). Holly discovered that the queen was actually an immortal sorceress with psychic abilities.

She had been waiting for Vincey for a very, very long time.

Answer: Ghosts

'The Turn of the Screw' was published in 1898. A new governess had been hired to care for Miles and Flora after their previous governess had died. Her job was not as simple as it had first seemed. She repeatedly saw two strangers within the grounds, though none of the other servants acknowledged their presence. Eventually, the governess learned that the two people she was able to see were the ghosts of her predecessor, Miss Jessel, and her lover.

Answer: 'The Island of Doctor Moreau' (H.G. Wells)

Edward Prendick was rescued from a shipwreck and taken to a mysterious island in the Pacific Ocean. The island belonged to Moreau, a disgraced English doctor whose work on vivisection (operating on live animals for experimentation) had led him to leave the country.

His scientific work did not stop, however. He had imported an array of animals so that he could experiment on them in secret.