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  The Fortune Teller

  SAMPI Books, Machado de Assis

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  "The Fortune Teller" by Machado de Assis tells the story of Rita, a married woman who, in the midst of a secret romance, consults a fortune teller in search of answers about her future. The plot explores themes such as superstition, fate, and betrayal, revealing the complexities and ironies of human relationships in an intriguing and engaging way.

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  The Opium Gates - A tale from...

  Marcel Schwob

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  Mayer André Marcel Schwob was born in Chaville, Hauts-de-Seine, France on 23rd August 1867 into a cultivated Jewish family.  
   
  As a child he devoured the works of Poe and Stevenson in French and then again in English.  His attachment to the bizarre and dark was already forming. 
   
  His education at the Lycée of Nantes earned him the 1st Prize for Excellence.  In 1881, he was in Paris with his maternal uncle to study at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand.  Schwob quickly developed his multilingual abilities and then studied philology and Sanscrit at the École pratique des hautes études before completing his military service in Vannes with the artillery. 
   
  After completing a Bachelor of Arts in 1888 he became a professional journalist and worked for the Phare de la Loire, the Événement and L'Écho de Paris. 
   
  The 1890’s marked his establishment as a brilliant writer with the publication of six short story collections.   
   
  He fell ill in 1896 with a chronic, incurable intestinal disorder.  He also suffered recurring bouts of influenza and pneumonia.  Intestinal surgery was given several times, at first with success but, by 1900, after two more surgeries, he was told that nothing more could be done for him.  Schwob now existed on kefir and fermented milk. 
   
  By the turn of the century, despite failing health, and often too ill to write, he embarked on several long travels, including to Vailima in the South Pacific where his literary hero Stevenson had died.  
   
  Schwob was regarded as a symbolist writer and a ‘precursor of Surrealism’.  He wrote over a hundred short stories, journalistic articles, essays, biographies, literary reviews and analysis, translations and plays.  
   
  Marcel Schwob died on 26th February 1905 of Pneumonia.  He was 37.

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  The Aberdyll Onion - And Other...

  Victor Canning

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  The collected short stories of the great Victor Canning, originally written and published in the 1950s and 1960s – full of humour, charm, and in true fashion of classic crime writing. 
  Canning’s heart-warming vignettes and clever mysteries take us from a Welsh valley to a far-off island and across the French countryside – introducing unforgettable characters and stories along the way.  Praise for Victor Canning: 
  ‘His gift of story-telling is obviously innate. Rarely does one come on so satisfying an amalgam of plot, characterisation and good writing.’ Punch 
  ‘Quite delightful … with an atmosphere of quiet contentment and humour that cannot fail to charm.’ Daily Telegraph 
  ‘A swift-moving novel, joyous, happy and incurably optimistic.’ Evening Standard 
  ‘There is such a gentle humour in the book.’ Daily Sketch 
  ‘What counts for most in the story … is his mounting pleasure in vagabondage and the English scene.’ The Times 
  ‘A paean to the beauties of the English countryside and the lovable oddities of the English character.’ New York Times

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  Murder by Moonrise

  Patrice McDonough

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  1867: For commoners and nobility alike, the Isle of Wight is an ideal holiday destination. Queen Victoria and her family frequently spend time at Osborne House, their stunning coastal residence. For the next few days the island will also be home to Dr. Julia Lewis, who is traveling with her grandfather and her great-aunt. But despite the pleasant surroundings, Julia is beset by worries.Julia and Inspector Richard Tennant grew close during their last investigation, but he abruptly left England on a dangerous chase. She has heard nothing from him in weeks; meanwhile her maid, Kate, is nervous about rising anti-Irish sentiment. Editorials call for harsh retaliation against those determined to rid Ireland of British rule.When Julia is called to perform an autopsy on drowning victim Lizzie Dowling, a young, Irish-born servant at Osborne House and a favorite of Princess Louise, she discovers that the girl was pregnant. Was her death a suicide? The distraught princess is eager for answers, and as Julia digs deeper, a second tragedy points to murder and perhaps a political scandal. There are rumors of smugglers funneling weapons to Ireland—and assassins who would target the Queen herself. Motives abound but time is in short supply—and every day brings deeper urgency and threats that neither riches nor royalty may withstand . . .

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  The Orphans of Mersea House

  Marty Wingate

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  England, 1957. Olive Kersey’s only love never returned from World War II, and now she’s alone and penniless. Then the last person she ever expected to see again returns to Southwold. Olive’s childhood friend, Margery Paxton, arrives to claim her inheritance: Mersea House, a stately old home she plans to turn into the town’s only lodging. Olive’s life takes a sunny turn when Margery hires her to run the establishment. But Mersea House holds its own mysteries—and its own dangers. First, rumors begin to fly when two enigmatic lodgers move in: Hugh Hodson, manager of the town cinema, and Mrs. Abigail Claypool, a recluse and war widow. And then the completely unexpected happens: Margery is informed she has a new ward, eleven-year-old Juniper Wyckes, the orphaned daughter of Margery’s first love. Mrs. Lucie Pagett, Children’s Officer at the local authority, informs Margery that Juniper was severely stricken with polio as a child and makes clear that she could be taken away if her welfare is in jeopardy. The past is never far behind for the inhabitants of Mersea House, and looming secrets may destroy the friendships they've created.

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  A Case of Desecration in the West

  Douglas Watt

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  'All is secrecy. All is lies… Does anyone tell us the truth here?'
  
  Scotland, 1691. Hooded figures have been seen in the woods and the dead have been wrenched from their resting place under the cover of darkness and their graves desecrated. A body is found floating in the River Clyde and a Duchess is determined to find answers.
  
  John MacKenzie's latest case takes him and his loyal assistant Davie Scougall to Hamilton Palace to discover the truth behind the curious drowning of local woman Bethia Porterfield. The kirk and sheriff have pronounced a verdict of self-murder, but the Duchess is unconvinced, and every soul connected to the case is guarding secrets of their own.
  
  Despite mounting pressure to leave the West, MacKenzie and Scougall must navigate the murky waters of the Clyde, where nothing is as it seems, to uncover the truth – was Bethia's death an accident, a suicide, or part of something much more sinister?

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