The Pool of the Black One

Robert E. Howard

The Pool of the Black One is one of the original short stories starring the sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert E. Howard. It is set in the pseudo-historical Hyborian Age and concerns Conan becoming the captain of a pirate vessel and encountering a remote island with a mysterious pool that has powers of transmutation.

The Blue Castle

Lucy Maud Montgomery

One of the only L.M. Montgomery books featuring an older heroine, The Blue Castle is widely hailed as a reader favorite and is filled with humor and romance. Valancy Stirling is 29, unmarried, and has never been in love. She lives a drab life with her overbearing mother and prying aunt. One day, an unexpected medical diagnosis changes everything for Valancy and, for the first time in her dull grey life, she rebels. From then on things begin to change. Rebelling against her family she soon discovers a surprising new world, full of love and adventures far beyond her most secret dreams.

Król Ryszard II

William Shakespeare

Udramatyzowana kronika życia angielskiego króla Ryszarda II, sprawującego rządy w latach 13771399. Punktem wyjścia dla utworu jest spór między dwoma królewskimi poddanymi, który to spór król ma za zadanie rozstrzygnąć. Obu poddanych król skazuje na wygnanie, jednak jeden z nich wraca na czele armii, uderza zbrojnie i koronuje się jako nowy król Anglii Henryk IV.

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

Daniel Defoe

Written in a time when criminal biographies enjoyed great success, Daniel Defoes The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders (aka Moll Flanders) details the life of the irresistible Moll and her struggles through poverty and sin in search of property and power. Born in Newgate prison and abandoned six months later, Moll Flanders drive to find and hold on to a secure place in society propels her through incest, adultery, bigamy, prostitution and a resourceful career as a thief before her crimes catch up with her, and she is transported to the colony of Virginia in the New World. The bawdy story of Moll Flanders vividly illustrates Defoes themes of social mobility and predestination, sin, redemption, reward and womans struggle for independence.

W cieniu wiązów

Anatole France

Pierwsza część cyklu Historia współczesna Anatolea Francea noblisty, wielkiego erudyty i bibliofila. France w mistrzowski sposób łączył wątki obyczajowe z pogłębioną refleksją dotyczącą otaczającego go świata, w której dawał wyraz sprecyzowanym poglądom socjalistyczno-pacyfistycznym. Budował światy na wskroś intelektualne i głęboko przeniknięte humanizmem.

Salamandra. Powieść fantastyczna

Stefan Grabiński

Salamandra to powieść fantastyczna, która bohaterem jest niejaki Jerzy. Człowiek ten ustawicznie spotyka wciąż tego samego, nieznanego mu osobnika. Co więcej, jego pojawianie się jest poprzedzone złudzeniem dostrzegania jego twarzy w fizjonomii całkiem niepodobnych przechodniów. Wkrótce Jerzy poznaje tajemniczego osobnika i się z nim zaprzyjaźnia. Od tej chwili w życiu bohatera pojawia się kalejdoskopowa mieszanina zjawisk niesamowitych i przerażających. Mamy tu między innymi sataniczną metafizykę, obrządki magiczne, hipnozę, letargi i najprzeróżniejszą masę okultyzmu.

Fritz to the Front. or The Ventriloquist Scamp-Hunter

Edward Lytton Wheeler

Another amusing tale from American author Edward Lytton Wheeler (1854-1885), this time from the east coast of America, with another hero and another damsel in need of help. A group of European and American tourists is enjoying its trip in Egypt in the year 1895. They are sailing up the River Nile in a a turtle-bottomed, round-bowed stern-wheeler, the Korosko. They intend to travel to Abousir at the southern frontier of Egypt, after which the Dervish country starts. They are attacked and abducted by a marauding band of Dervish warriors. The terrorists will either kill them or forcibly convert them to Islam. This desert drama is high adventure at its pulpy best, and still surprisingly relevant today. Highly recommended for lovers of adventures!

The Shaggy Legion

Hal G. Evarts

Arapaho Gilroy, who was briefly loved to call Rapaho Hill. He was known by many. He was known wherever there were Indians of any tribe or white people with many years of experience to the West. Arpakho, to some extent, was a real robber. He ran across adventures everywhere. For such a hero is interesting to watch.

Death at the Inn

R. Austin Freeman

John Gillum arrives in London from Australia apparently a wealthy man and then proceeds to cheerfully gamble his entire fortune away. During this period he cultivates the friendship of Mortimer, the bank official after meeting him at the scene of a murder near the bank. He mentions in conversation that he felt suicide was a very understandable option to someone who had lost everything. When Gillums body is found, the inquest duly returns a verdict of suicide and blackmail is suspected of being a contributory factor. However Gillums cousin is so convinced that he would never have killed himself, he engages Thorndyke to try to find the blackmailers and bring all the issues to light. The problem is, no one knows who the blackmailers are or even what the man was being blackmailed for.

The Red Ranger

H.A. Cody

The main character from the very beginning meets with difficulty. The storm does not allow you to continue your journey through the sea. He lands on an unknown shore. Where is the difficulty to overcome, and find out the difficult situation. The air seemed suffocating, and dark memories made his brain wince. He called himself a fool for coming here, and he decided never to visit this place again.

The Survivor

E. Phillips Oppenheim

A striking romantic novel of 1913 of a young Englishmans uphill fight. Douglas Guest is an orphan, raised by a stern, religious, and uncompromising uncle, Gideon Strong, in the North of England. His uncle orders him to marry his cousin and take up the post of cleric in their small town but he confronts his uncle, takes money which was intended for his education, and escapes to London. On the train, he meets the beautiful Countess Emily de Reuss, who takes an interest in him. Douglas has aspirations to be a writer in London but is frustrated when no publisher will buy his work. Emily has spread the word that no one should support him. Meanwhile, his uncle is found murdered, and his two cousins, Cicely and Jane, have come to London to find the murderer.

General Besserleys Second Puzzle Box

E. Phillips Oppenheim

General Besserley sat before his writing-table, drawn close up to the wide-flung windows of his summer-house, his pen clasped in his idle fingers, his eyes wandering though a tangle of drooping roses and clematis beyond the gardens below to where a car was crawling up the mountain road. He leaned a little sideways and touched a bell. In a few moments a white-coated butler opened the door and approached the table.

Adventure

Jack London

The novel Adventure in an acute, exciting form tells about the life of American and European settlers on the tropical islands of the Pacific Ocean. The main characters are no less pathos than villains who are so colorful in their villainy that they set their teeth together. Jack London, in the preface, writes that this book came out of the movie script. And truly, it is full of adventure, changing locations, colorful descriptions of snow-white beaches.

Sir Adam Disappeared

E. Phillips Oppenheim

Scotland Yard unearths the mysterious disappearance of a wealthy, eccentric banker, the reason for a dead man in his bank, and the vanishing of the banks funds. The background shifts from the bank to the club, and the missing millionaires known habits give necessary leads to the unscrambling of the mystery. Oppenheim continues to hold up his end. An enjoyable read! E. Phillips Oppenheim was a British author who wrote nearly 150 novels during his career. He styled himself as the prince of storytellers, and is credited with creating the rogue male genre of adventure thrillers and was one of the earliest writers of spy fiction.

The Wisdom of Father Brown

G.K. Chesterton

In Chestertons second Father Brown book, The Wisdom of Father Brown, we get a series of bizarre, sometimes dangerous mysteries that Father Brown must puzzle out. Some of the crimes are simple once Brown explains them, but others are devious, chilling things that are wrapped in Chestertons poetic prose. In the stories that follow, the priest investigates many other mysteries: a sinister voodoo cult, a nobleman with a deformed ear, a gang of Italian thieves, a lie-detector with one major problem (the operator), a girl who is blackmailed for a crime nobody knows she committed, a burning tower, a murder that may be suicide, and a man who is under a horrible death curse. Father Brown solves things by observation and thought, in some ways like Poirot, but in an unassuming and modest manner. The stories are each very different, but are very good reading.

Ein gerissener Kerl. Roman

Edgar Wallace

Lord Frensham ist Toten. Inspektor Elk und Tony Braid finden Lord tot in seinem Büro. Er lag mit dem Oberkörper auf dem Schreibtisch. Seine rechte Hand umklammerte den Revolver,und neben dem Toten fand man einen Abschiedsbrief. Offensichtlich Selbstmord, aber Elk ist nicht überzeugt. Inspektor Elk muss seine Ermittlungen aufnehmen. Und am Ende siegt, wider Erwarten, die Ehrlichkeit, die niemand hier wirklich erwartet.

Der Findling

Jules Verne

Der Findling ist ein Roman des französischen Autors Jules Verne, der in Irland zum Auflauf des 19. Jahrhunderts spielt. Zu dieser Zeit war Irland von der Armut, der Menschenverachtung und der Willkür der Landbesitzer beherrscht. Er erzählt die Geschichte eines von seiner Mutter ausgesetzten Kindes. Die Zeit des Heranwachsens ist eine Zeit des Leidens, die das Kind an verschiedene Schauplätze führt. In einem kleinen Ort gastiert der reisende Papiertheater-Schausteller Thornpipe seine Vorführungen. Doch die Zuschauer erkennen schnell, dass hinter den automatischen Bewegungen der Puppen ein Geheimnis steht, das im Inneren des Wagens von Thornpipe verborgen sein muss.

Silvertips Strike

Max Brand

In his last evil plan, the dying Steve Wycombe wills his land, stock, and cash to his three worst enemies, Morris Delgas, Harry Rutherford, and Jim Silver, with the knowledge that sooner or later there would be violence over the inheritance. He actually dictates his will while dying from being shot in the stomach. He makes them, one honest man and two crooked, run his ranch. He knows that it is only a matter of time before they come to blows, but that is exactly what he wants them to do to each other. One of many recommended Westerns by this prolific author. Frederick Schiller Faust (May 29, 1892 - May 12, 1944) was an American author known primarily for his thoughtful and literary Westerns under the pen name Max Brand.

What Happened to Forester

E. Phillips Oppenheim

Major Andrew Forester is a retired British Army officer, of no discernible occupation, who wanders about Europe, England and the United States. He is looking for adventure, but not outside the bounds of the acceptable. He is willing to skirt the law, but not break it. His peripatetic life style brings him in contact with scam artists, gold-diggers, art thieves, industrial spies, taxi dancers, and flappers. Sometimes he benefits from these associations, but at other times he is their victim. He does this all with style, impeccable clothing, and a humorous tolerance of human failings. What Happened to Forester is collection of short stories which includes the following ones: Ange Marie, The modern marauder, The shrew of Madrid, An ethical dilemma, The fugitive of Adelphie terrace, The battling pacifist and others.

Le Grillon du foyer

Charles Dickens

La maison de Piribinglov protege lesprit du foyer familial, a savoir le grillon. John est lhomme principal de la maison. John fait entrer un mystérieux étranger dans la maison et les événements commencent a se développer tres rapidement. John soupçonne sa femme detre tombée amoureuse dun inconnu mystérieux. Latmosphere se réchauffe. Cependant, a la fin, tout est résolu en toute sécurité grâce grillon.

The Parowan Bonanza

B.M. Bower

B. M. Bower was the first woman to make a career of writing popular westerns. Her works, featuring cowboys and cows of the Flying U Ranch in Montana, reflected an interest in ranch life, the use of working cowboys as main characters, the occasional appearance of eastern types for the sake of contrast, a sense of western geography as simultaneously harsh and grand, and a good deal of factual attention to such matters as cattle branding and bronc busting. The Parowan Bonanza is one of her stories. This short but engaging novel contains all of the elements that made B. M. Bowers books a mainstay of the genre of classic Westerns.

The Colossus of Arcadia

E. Phillips Oppenheim

This late novel of E. Phillips Oppenheim begins as the Train Bleu pulls into the railroad station in Monaco. Its a leisurely spy fiction tale set in Monaco as various members of aristocracy from different countries plus one vacationing American woman find themselves involved with international intrigue. The bulk of the book consists of members of the leisure class drinking cocktails, playing baccarat, and generally spending time in Monacos elite clubs. Oppenheims work often reflected the current political and social events he was living through. In the late 1930s, Oppenheim was living in the South of France, near Monaco, as that playground of the wealthy slowly emptied out it wealthy and royal clientele in advance of the coming war.

Le Ventre de Paris

Émile Zola

Le Ventre de Paris le monde du marché central, le monde de la nourriture et la fete de lestomac. Emil Zola a peint de maniere colorée et détaillée tous les magasins et boutiques de ce coin de la ville, représentant de maniere colorée les vendeurs, leurs intérets et leurs interconnexions. Ici, les gens naissent, grandissent, tombent amoureux et meurent. Il y a des intrigues et des complots que le palais royal lui-meme envie. Le principal conflit du travail est la confrontation de personnes épaisses et minces, de personnes entierement satisfaites de la vie bien remplie et de personnes souhaitant changer quelque chose, meme a un prix défiant

The Gambler

Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky

Inspired by Dostoevskys own gambling addiction and written under pressure in order to pay off his creditors and retain his rights to his literary legacy, The Gambler is set in the casino of the fictional German spa town of Roulettenburg and follows the misfortunes of the young tutor Alexei Ivanovich working in the household of an imperious Russian general. He begins gambling to win enough money to become a rich man and therefore win the favor of the woman that he loves. In the disastrous love affairs and gambling adventures of Alexei Ivanovich, Dostoevsky explores the irresistible temptation to look into the abyss of ultimate risk that he believed was an essential part of the Russian national character. In The Gambler, Dostoevsky reaches the heights of drama with this stunning psychological portrait