A Nights Adventure in Rome

William Harrison Ainsworth

For a person unaccustomed to the imposing religious ceremonies of the Catholic Church, it was a delightful sight to observe all the pomp and splendor displayed at this high celebration. The papal choir now and then sang the melodic masses characteristic of worship, and hundreds of centers spread all-consuming spirits around.

The Adventures of Jimmie Dale

Frank L. Packard

Wealthy millionaire by day, at night Jimmie Dale put on a costume and becomes The Grey Seal, daredevil safe cracker and footpad he never takes a thing, but leaves behind his mark, a grey seal of paper to mark his conquest. He was just doing it for the sheer deviltry of it at first, but when a woman catches him she blackmails him to war on certain crime organizations. Frank Packards Gray Seal character first appeared in print in 1914. In some ways he was inspired by earlier Edwardian adventurers like A.J Raffles, the Scarlet Pimpernel, and Arsene Lupin, but Packard blended those borrowed elements into an entirely new concept. Dales adventures first appeared in Peoples Magazine and then were collected into several novels.

The Crimson Gardenia

Rex Beach

The royal yacht dropped anchor to the roar of the cannons, and the king went ashore. The city was hung with flags; a thousand whistles sounded. Up the garlanded streets, His Majesty was led between long lines of blue-coated officers, followed by an impatient crowd for miles after miles.

Homeward Bound, or, the Chase. A Tale of the Sea

James Fenimore Cooper

The storyline is centered around a sea voyage. The storys subtitle is The Chase and it picks up right away as the authorities try to get back a passenger who apparently owes money to the father of his new fiancée.

Sketches by Boz. Illustrative of Every-Day Life and Every-Day People

Charles Dickens

Sketches by Boz, Illustrative of Every-day Life and Every-day People is a collection of short pieces published by Charles Dickens in 1836. The 56 sketches concern London scenes and people and are divided into four sections: Our Parish, Scenes, Characters, and Tales. The material in the first three of these sections is non-fiction. The last section comprises fictional stories. It was Dickenss first book, published when he was twenty-four, and in it we find him walking the London streets, in theatres, pawnshops, law-courts, prisons, along the Thames, and on the omnibus, missing nothing, recording and transforming urban and suburban life into new terrain for literature. Originally, the sketches were published in various newspapers and periodicals from 1833-1836 before being published collectively in one volume. If you enjoy the works of Charles Dickens then this collection is highly recommended for your book collection.

The Rover

Joseph Conrad

This is both mystery and romance; the latter creates one of the recurring difficulties in Conrad: it preserves the Victorian histrionic element, which sometimes may seem a little attractive. But overall, it is well read and much less burdensome than some of his novels. The Rover was Conrads last book and probably one of his most accessible stories.

The Ghost of a Chance

Mary Cholmondeley

The large, sumptuous room, with its dim oriental rugs and subdued lighting, a fine set of Indian paintings, and two exquisite rose-red lacquered cabinets, had great charm. The main character has just returned from China. Huge packing boxes, stacked one above the other in the hall, were no doubt full of wonderful acquisitions, china, embroideries, carpets. But he didnt seem to want to unpack them.

Kuszenie świętego Antoniego

Gustaw Flaubert

Najważniejsze dzieło Gustavea Flauberta, które sam autor nazywał dziełem całego swojego życia. Powstawało ono dwadzieścia pięć lat w trzech różnych wersjach. Ostatecznie autor zdecydował się wydać ostatnią z nich w 1874 roku. Święty Antoni spotyka się z wyznawcami różnych wierzeń, od chrześcijaństwa po heretyków, cudotwórców, szamanów, przedstawiających swoje poglądy i wiarę w Boga, co podważa jego wiarę i dotychczasową widzę o otaczającym go świecie.