Longlists announced for the International Gothic Association Book Prizes 2026

Now that all nominations have been received and verified, it is a pleasure to announce the longlists for the two IGA book Prizes.

Now that all nominations have been received and verified, it is a pleasure to announce the longlists for the two IGA book Prizes. Five monographs were nominated for the Alan Lloyd Smith prize, and eight essay collections were nominated for the Justin D. Edwards prize, with many books receiving multiple nominations. The resulting longlists are as follows:

Longlist for the Allan Lloyd Smith Prize for Best Monograph 2026:

  • Dale Townshend, Matthew Gregory Lewis: The Gothic and Romantic Literary Culture (University of Wales Press, 2024)
  • Emma McEvoy, The Music of the Gothic, 1789-1820 (Cambridge University Press, 2024)
  • Rebecca Wynne-Walsh, New Basque Gothic (Manchester University Press, 2025)
  • David Ashford, A Book of Monsters: Promethean Horror in Modern Literature and Culture (Manchester University Press, 2024)
  • Joana Jacob Ramalho, Memory and the Gothic Aesthetic in Film (Palgrave Macmillan, 2025)

Longlist for the Justin D. Edwards Prize for Best Edited Collection 2026

  • Nick Groom and William Hughes, eds., The Vampire: An Edinburgh Companion (Edinburgh University Press, 2025)
  • Andrew Smith, ed., The Victorian Ghost Story: An Edinburgh Companion (Edinburgh University Press, 2025)
  • Robert Edgar, Lauren Stephenson and John Marland, eds., Horrifying Children: Hauntology and the Legacy of Children’s Television (Bloomsbury, 2024)
  • John Whatley, ed., The Gothic in Times of Crisis (Manchester University Press, 2025)
  • Carol Margaret Davison, ed., Gothic Dreams and Nightmares (Manchester University Press, 2024)
  • Barbara Chamberlin, Julia Round, and Kom Kunyosying, eds., Horror and Comics (University of Wales Press, 2025)
  • Sam George and Bill Hughes, eds., The Legacy of John Polidori: The Romantic Vampire and its Progeny (Manchester University Press, 2024)
  • Ruth Heholt and Jo Parsons, eds., Ghosts and the Gothic (Manchester University Press, 2025)

All nominations will be assessed by a panel of past winners and presidents of the IGA. The Chair for the prize panels is Joseph Crawford. The Secretary for the prize is Alexia Ainsworth. A shortlist will be published on the IGA website by the middle of July. The prizes will be presented (or, if a winning author is not present, announced) during the conference which, this year, is hosted at the University of Hull, July 28-31 2026.

Congratulations to all nominees!