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  A Wicked Woman - From their pens...

  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.

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  Rising Spirit - A Jesse...

  Wayne Stinnett

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  In the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, Jesse McDermitt has rebuilt his island in the Content Keys far better than it was before the storm. The task was enormous, but so was his need to make things better. 
  Unbeknownst to Jesse, an environmentally conscious woman from his past has stumbled onto a drug manufacturing cartel in Virginia while working on a pollution mitigation problem. The cartel responds by sending someone to kill people Jesse cares for. A contract killer stalks the woman all the way to Miami, leaving bodies in his wake. 
  With the help of an old flame in the FBI, Jesse goes to the snow-covered Appalachians to get to the root of the trouble: an unscrupulous prosecutor and dirty sheriff, who are producing LSD on an unbelievable scale. 
  Is Jesse out of his element this time? Can he protect the people he cares for most? It’s a race against time and Mother Nature to find a killer stalking the quiet neighborhoods of Coconut Grove.

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  Christmas Eve at a Cornish Manor...

  Clara Venn

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  The bookshelves of British literature are incredible collections that have gathered together centuries of very talented authors.  From these Isles their fame spread and whilst among their number many are now forgotten or neglected their talents endure.  Among them is Clara Venn.

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  Moby Dick

  Herman Melville

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  "Moby Dick" by Herman Melville is one of the most celebrated works of fiction in the English language, a cornerstone of American literature, and an unflinching exploration of the human spirit. First published in 1851, this timeless classic has captivated generations with its daring narrative and profound themes, earning its place as a touchstone of literary excellence. 
  Whether you're new to the epic or revisiting its pages, "Moby Dick" promises an unforgettable journey across storm-tossed seas and into the hearts of its characters. Captain Ahab, with his fiery determination and unyielding obsession, stands as one of literature's most iconic figures, while Ishmael's reflective voice offers readers a lens through which to grapple with the novel's expansive questions. With its masterful blend of adventure, drama, and existential inquiry, this is a book that rewards both the curious reader and the philosophical thinker. 
  Perfect for lovers of classic literature, maritime history, or tales of relentless pursuit, "Moby Dick" remains as powerful and relevant today as when it was first penned. Join the crew of the Pequod and immerse yourself in an odyssey that will leave you awestruck, reflective, and deeply moved.

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  Top 10 Short Stories The -...

  Thomas Hardy

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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. 
   
  This limb of land extends into the Atlantic Ocean.  It’s fortunes and livelihood based on what its rugged landscape, it’s shores and surrounding seas could bring to its people.  Within the ranks of these locally born authors are some of our greatest talents. 
   
  01 - The Top 10 - Authors of the English South-West - An Introduction 
  2 - The Fiddler of the Reels by Thomas Hardy 
  3 - The Female Husband by Henry Fielding 
  4 - Miss Ogilivy Finds Herself by Radclyffe Hall 
  5 - Private Merrick, Company Idiot by Sapper 
  6 - Lucy Wren by Ada Radford 
  7 - The Omnibus by Arthur Quiller-Couch 
  8 - Betty Brown, the St Giles Orange Girl by Hannah More 
  9 - The Botathen Ghost from Footprints of Former Men in Far Cornwall by the Reverend R S Hawker 
  10 - After the Funeral by Mary Butts 
  11 - Fantomina or Love in a Maze - Part 1 by Eliza Haywood 
  12 - Fantomina or Love in a Maze - Part 2 by Eliza Haywood

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  The Star Child

  Oscar Wilde

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  "The Star-Child" by the Irish author Oscar Wilde, first published in 1891, is a fantasy story about a handsome boy who for the first ten years of his life believes that he is truly the son of a star. As a result, he believes himself to be superior to everyone else and becomes vain, arrogant and cruel. When his real mother, a beggar woman, comes to the village where he lives, he wants nothing to do with her and mocks her for her ugliness. As punishment for his cruelty, he becomes monstrously ugly himself. He remains so until he shows kindness to others, even at the risk of his own life.
   
  Oscar Wilde (October 16, 1854 - November 30, 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is best remembered for his epigrams, plays, short stories, and his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray.

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