St. Irvyne; or, The Rosicrucian retells the destiny of Wolfstein, a solitary wanderer and a disillusioned outcast from society who seeks to kill himself. After he is saved by the monks, he encounters Ginotti, an alchemist of the Rosicrucian, or Rose Cross Order who seeks to impart the secret of immortality.

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets, and is regarded by some as among the finer lyric and philosophical poets in the English language, and one of the more influential. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not see fame during his lifetime, but recognition of his achievements in poetry grew steadily following his death. His early Gothic novels outline his atheistic worldview and touches upon his earliest thoughts on irresponsible self-indulgence and violent revenge.