Publisher: ALI MURTAZA
Hailed by some fans as the Stephen King of the early twentieth century, Richard Marsh produced a prodigious body of work in the horror, mystery, and supernatural genres before turning to action-adventure later in life. The collection Between the Dark and the Daylight brings together some of Marsh's best work, ranging from mysteries to romances and more.
Written in 1882, and set in the author's beloved West Country, Two on a Tower is one of Hardy's earliest works. This fast moving story combines tragedy, romance and humour in a convoluted tale of human relationships. It also reflects Hardy's interest in the stars and astronomy. Lonely Viviette Constantine awaits the return of her husband from a hunting expedition to Africa. She becomes involved with a young astronomer, Swithin St. Cleeve, who observes the night sky from a disused tower on her estate. Despite their differing ages and social backgrounds they soon find their destinies linked - but with fateful consequencesShow book
Arguably the first major American novel to satirize the political milieu of Washington, D.C. and the wild speculation schemes that exploded across the nation in the years that followed the Civil War, The Gilded Age gave this remarkable era its name. Co-written by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner, this rollicking novel is rife with unscrupulous politicians, colorful plutocrats, and blindly optimistic speculators caught up in a frenzy of romance, murder, and surefire deals gone bust. First published in 1873 and filled with unforgettable characters such as the vainglorious Colonel Sellers and the ruthless Senator Dilsworthy, The Gilded Age is a hilarious and instructive lesson in American history. the story is told using the first-person narrative voice of Huck Finn.Show book
A count's only son could learn nothing. Three times the count sent him for a year to famous masters. Each time, the son came back: saying first that he knew what dogs said when they barked; the next time, what birds said; and finally, what frogs said. Infuriated by his uselessness, his father ordered his people to take him to the woods and kill him, but they sympathised with him, and instead brought the count the eyes and tongue of a deer as proof of his death.Show book
In the grotesque bell-ringer Quasimodo, Victor Hugo created one of the most vivid characters in classic fiction. Quasimodo’s doomed love for the beautiful gypsy girl Esmerelda is an example of the traditional love theme of beauty and the beast. Yet, set against the massive background of Notre Dame de Paris and interwoven with the sacred and secular life of medieval France, it takes on a larger perspective. The characters come to life: the poet Gringoire, the tormented priest Claude Frollo, the upright, fun-loving captain Phoebus and above all Quasimodo and Esmerelda themselves. It is a tale peppered with humour but fuelled by the anguish which unfolds beneath the bells of the great cathedral of Paris.Show book
What would you do to save a loved one? Tell a lie? Risk your life? Send a stranger to the Guillotine? For Marguerite Blakeney, this question becomes all too real when she is given a cruel "Either-Or" On the one hand hangs the life of her beloved brother, Armand, and on the other, the life of an enigmatic hero, The Scarlet Pimpernel.Show book
Originally published anonymously in the form of a pamphlet, the intriguing ghost story entitled: A True Relation of the Apparition of One Mrs. Veal the Next Day after her Death to One Mrs. Bargrave at Canterbury the 8th of September, 1705 has long been the cause of academic speculation and dispute. The theme of the story is an uncanny interaction between the spiritual world and the physical world, as well as the nature of death itself. The story describes a posthumous visit by Mrs. Veal to her friend Mrs. Bargrave, during which strange insights and confidences are exchanged.Show book
