Among the most notable of his romances are "O Romance de um Homem Rico", his favorite, "Retrato de Ricardina", "Amor de Perdição", the collection of novellas "Novelas do Minho" and "A Brasileira de Prazins". Many of his novels are autobiographical, like "Onde está a felicidade?" and "Memórias do Cárcere" and "Vinganca". Castelo Branco is an admirable story-teller, largely because he was a brilliant "improvisatore", but he does not attempt character study. He has a richness of vocabulary probably unmatched in all Portuguese literature, often using obscure words. At the same time, few Portuguese authors have demonstrated so profound a knowledge of the vernacular tongue. Though nature had endowed Camilo with a poetic temperament, his verses are considered to be mediocre, while his best plays are cast in bold lines and contain powerfully dramatic situations, and his comedies are a triumph of the grotesque, with a mordant tone reminiscent of the work of Gil Vicente.