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  The Ghost and the Bone Setter -...

  Sheridan Le Fanu

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  Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu was born on 28th August 1814 in Dublin into a literary family with Huguenot, Irish and English roots.   
  For a time he and his siblings were tutored but Le Fanu would often immerse himself in the books of his father’s library. 
  In 1833 Le Fanu began his Law studies at Trinity College, Dublin and graduated in 1839. Although called to the bar he instead began a career in journalism.   
  He was also writing. His first fiction story ‘The Ghost and the Bonesetter’ was published in 1838.  In 1843 came the novella ‘Spalatro: From the Notes of Fra Giacomo’, a hero with a particular necrophiliac passion for an undead blood-drinking beauty, a forerunner to his later female vampire ‘Carmilla’.  
  In 1844 Le Fanu married Susanna Bennett with whom he had 4 children. The following year his first novel ‘The C'ock and Anchor’ was published. Works now flowed from his pen and with a rapid increase in family finances they moved, in 1851, to Merrion Square, Dublin, where he remained until his death.  
  In 1858 Susanna died and Le Fanu became reclusive. It was during this period that he produced some of his best work.  Working only by candlelight he wrote through the night, burnishing his reputation as a major figure of 19th Century supernaturalism with many classics including; ‘Green Tea’, ‘Mr Justice Harbottle’, and ‘In a Glass Darkly’.  
  Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu died in Merrion Square in his native Dublin on February 7th, 1873, at the age of 58.

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  A Piece of Steak - American...

  Jack London

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  John Griffith Chaney was born on January 12th, 1876 in San Francisco.   
   
  His father, William Chaney, was living with Flora Wellman when she became pregnant.  Chaney insisted she have an abortion.  Flora's response was to turn a gun on herself.  Although her wounds were not severe the trauma made her temporarily deranged. 
   
  In late 1876 his mother married John London and the young child was brought to live with them as they moved around the Bay area, eventually settling in Oakland where now, calling himself Jack, he completed grade school. 
   
  Jack worked hard at several jobs, sometimes 12-18 hours a day, but his dream was university.  He studied hard and borrowed the money to enrol in the summer of 1896 at the University of California in Berkeley. 
   
  In 1897, at 21, Jack searched out newspaper accounts of his mother's suicide attempt and for the name of his biological father. He wrote to Chaney, then living in Chicago, who claimed he could not be Jack’s father because he was impotent and casually asserted that London's mother had relations with other men.  Jack, devastated by the response, quit Berkeley and went to the Klondike. Other accounts suggest that his dire finances presented Jack with the excuse he needed to leave. 
   
  In the Klondike Jack began to gather material for his writing but also accumulated many health problems, including scurvy, which together with hip and leg problems he would carry for the rest of his life. 
   
  During the late 1890's Jack was regularly publishing short stories and by the turn of the century full blown novels. 
   
  By 1904 Jack had married, fathered two children and was now in the process of divorcing.  A stint as a reporter on the Russo-Japanese war of 1904 was equal amounts trouble and experience. But that experience was always put to good use in a continuing and remarkable output of work. 
   
  In 1905 he married Charmian Kittredge who at last was a soul and companion who brought him some semblance of peace despite his advancing alcoholism and his incurable wanderlust. 
   
  Twelve years later Jack had amassed both wealth and a literary reputation through such classics as ‘The Call of the Wild’, ‘White Fang’ and many others. He had a reputation as a social activist and was a tireless friend of the workers.   
   
  Jack London died suffering from dysentery, late-stage alcoholism and uremia, aged only 40, on November 22nd 1916 at his property in Glen Elen in California 
   
  In ‘A piece of Steak’ an ageing prizefighter seeks one last win. Not for glory, or to revisit fame, but simply to put food on the table and keep his family together.  But to do that he must beat a highly rated up and coming adversary.

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  Caterpillars - From their pens...

  E F Benson

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  Edward Frederic Benson was born in Berkshire, England on 24th July 1867. 
  Educated at Marlborough and Kings College Cambridge he began his career as a writer at an early age and was published whilst still studying. 
  Benson was also a gifted athlete and represented his country at figure skating. 
  His career was prodigious and widely acknowledged.  Perhaps he is best known for his collection of novels about ‘Mapp & Lucia’ which have proved very popular throughout the decades.   
  Benson was also well regarded as a writer of ghost stories—‘spook stories’ in the then vernacular—as well as biographies.  His ghost and supernatural fiction covered a range of subjects but all were exceptionally well-written, drenched in atmosphere, riven with chills and have stood the test of popularity over the decades as testament to his literary talents.  
  Benson was never married and practised his homosexuality discreetly. 
  E F Benson died on 29th February 1940 at University College Hospital, London of throat cancer.  He was 72.

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  Carnacki the Ghost-Finder

  William Hope Hodgson

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  What happens when science confronts the supernatural?
  
  Carnacki, the Ghost-Finder introduces Thomas Carnacki, a pioneering occult detective who investigates hauntings using both ancient mysticism and cutting-edge technology. First published in the early twentieth century, these stories stand at the crossroads of horror, mystery, and early science fiction.
  
  From haunted houses and cursed rooms to unexplained apparitions, Carnacki approaches each case with calm intelligence, employing electrical devices, protective circles, and deep knowledge of the occult. Hodgson's unique blend of rational investigation and cosmic terror creates an atmosphere of creeping dread and intellectual suspense.
  
  This collection helped define the occult detective genre and influenced generations of supernatural fiction writers.
  
  Inside this eBook, you'll explore:
  
  A series of chilling supernatural investigations
  
  One of fiction's earliest occult detective heroes
  
  A blend of science, logic, and ancient mysticism
  
  Classic tales that shaped modern horror and weird fiction
  
  Long admired by fans of H.P. Lovecraft–era horror and classic ghost stories, Carnacki, the Ghost-Finder remains essential reading for anyone fascinated by the unknown.
  
  Enter the case files of the supernatural. Buy now and experience one of the most influential occult fiction classics ever written.

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  Belphagor - From their pens to...

  Niccolò Machiavelli

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  The bookshelves of European literature are incredible collections that have gathered together centuries of very talented authors.  From this continent their fame spread and whilst among their number many are now forgotten or neglected their talents endure.  Among them is Niccolò Machiavelli.

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  Top 10 Short Stories The -...

  Oscar Wilde, Anthony Trollope,...

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  Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart.  A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. 
   
  In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author?  
   
  The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme.  Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. 
   
  Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made.  If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. 
   
  In this volume we explore and enjoy the stories of authors who attended one of the great seats of learning.  Amongst their storied number are Anthony Trollope, Radclyffe Hall, Lewis Carroll and a host of others.   
   
  01 - The Top 10 - Oxford - An Introduction 
  02 - Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - Part 1 by Oscar Wilde 
  03 - Lord Arthur Savile's Crime - Part 2 by Oscar Wilde 
  04 - Malachi's Cove by Anthony Trollope 
  05 - The Blank Cheque by Lewis Carroll 
  06 - Miss Ogilivy Finds Herself by Radclyffe Hall 
  07 - Lucifera by Anthony Hope 
  08 - Couching at the Door by D K Broster 
  09 - The Spectre of Tappington - Part 1 by Richard Harris Barham 
  10 - The Spectre of Tappington - Part 2 by Richard Harris Barham 
  10 - Thurnley Abbey by Perceval Landon 
  11 - The Omnibus by Arthur Quiller-Couch 
  12 - The Beast With Five Fingers by W F Harvey

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