Whenever I sit down to think of how to précis the most recent issue of our wonderful Rambling Rose, I
always look at what is going on in nature. As I write this, the nights are drawing in; twinkly fairy lights
are beginning to grace trees and doorways; and there is a definite smokiness to the winter chill. There
is something undeniably irresistible about writings that invite us into shadowed corners and flickering
lamplight. This issue of the Rambling Rose (our tenth!) embraces that spirit - none more so than Amba’s
article on the Gothic: a genre that thrives on mystery, atmosphere, and the thrill of the unknown.
From haunted halls to ghost stories, our journalists explore what it means to confront fear and fascination.
Esme’s visit to Shepton Mallet prison reminds us that real-life spaces can feel as chilling as any fictional
castle; while Jason’s article on world-building transports us to Antarctica - a landscape as conflicted and
sublime as any Gothic moor.
Yet the Gothic is not only darkness; it is also a
