 (1803), despite its enticing title, is not a Gothic novel, but a rollicking farce which still retains much of its humour after two centuries.Lathom can be cited for two important achievements as a novelist.First, he was one of the first writers of historical fiction, with historical romances such as "The Mysterious Freebooter; or, The Days of Queen Bess" (1806), a novel which blends fact and fiction regarding Queen Elizabeth, predating the better known historical novels of Scott.