The Turn of the Screw is an 1898 horror novella by Henry James, first serialized in Collier's Weekly magazine from January 27 to April 16, 1898, and later published in book form as part of The Two Magics by Macmillan in New York City and Heinemann in London. The novella tells the story of a very young woman's first job as a governess for two enigmatic children, Miles and Flora, at a desolate estate. The governess soon encounters half-seen figures who glare from dark towers and dusty windows - silent, foul phantoms that increasingly come closer, threatening the innocence of her charges.

The governess realizes with horror that these fiendish creatures want the children, aiming to corrupt their bodies, possess their minds, and own their souls. But the terror deepens when it becomes evident that Miles and Flora have no fear of the evil that stalks them, for they desire the presence of the walking dead just as fervently as the dead yearn for them.