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Hugh Walpole
Judith Paris, now middle-aged, is returning to the Lakes to deal with the fierce feud between the two branches of the family. The feud ended with the construction of one branch of a huge house, known as the Fortress, which will dominate the land of others. But in this conflict, the children of two families play an important role.
E. Phillips Oppenheim
A best-selling author of novels, short stories, magazine articles, translations, and plays, Oppenheim published over 150 books. He is considered one of the originators of the thriller genre, his novels also range from spy thrillers to romance, but all have an undertone of intrigue. He was the earliest writer of spy fiction as understood today, and invented the Rogue Male school of adventure thrillers that was later exploited by John Buchan and Geoffrey Household. This 1927 old detective story by Oppenheim revisits the plot device of a young man who comes into a large fortune suddenly and explores the class differences between the lower middle, and the upper class.
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.
Aidan de Brune
Another breathtaking novel by the master of mystery Aidan de Brune. What is the secret of the derelict mansion in the Australian countryside? The Fortune-Telling House is a fast-paced mystery, with good twists and turns where you can find the answer. Aidan de Brune provides a thrill of another sort! The author has acquired an admirable technique of the sort demanded by the novel of intrigue and mystery. De Brune is one of those thriller writers who were in their day wildly popular, but are today little read. He was a prolific author who wrote in a variety of genres.
Alexandre Dumas
The Forty-Five Guardsmen, by Alexandre Dumas (1894), the most celebrated of French romance writers, is in two volumes, and is the third of a series known as The Valois Romances. It basically deals with Diana de Meridor and her servant Remy who find a way to take revenge upon Duc dAnjou for his heinous betrayal of Bussy dAmboise. Historically it commences with the execution of Salcede and the arrival of the Forty-Five at Paris and deals with the Guise intrigues, the campaign of Anjou in Flanders and his death; the events in the novel take place in 1584-1585. Alexandre Dumas The Forty-Five Guardsmen, which has been translated into several languages, tells a wonderful story, full of the rich historical detail, rousing action, and gripping characters that mark the best of Dumas work.
William Le Queux
Michael Berrington is a bachelor leading a quiet life in London. Overhearing a conversation at his club one day, he becomes interested in a discussion regarding a man named Gastrell. Gastrell is somewhat of a mystery to the club members in spite of his renting a house from one of them. Berringtons interest in Gastrell intensifies as his fiancé, Dulcie Challoner, befriends a wealthy widow, Mrs. Connie Stapleton who evidently has some type of relationship with Gastrell. As the plot progresses, Berrington finds himself involved with sensational robberies, brutal murders, coded messages, and even mind control! As in many Le Queux books, there are twists and turns as new characters and locations are introduced.
Edgar Wallace
Written in 1905, it is one of Wallaces many popular thriller novels. Four Just Men was the start of a series about a determined band of European vigilantes who decide to kill off people in the world whom the law cannot punish. Their ingenuity and ability to keep several steps ahead of those who would thwart them, including police, are the essence of the plot. When the British Foreign Secretary Sir Philip Ramon decides to push through a law which will allow the enforced return of political refugees to their countries of origin, he becomes a target of the Four Just Men. These are iconic stories of adventure, intrigue and retribution set in the time immediately following the First World War. Highly recommended for people who like to treat a mystery story as a solvable riddle.
O. Henry
This anthology contains 25 tales of old New York city at the dawn of the 20th century. A collection of O. Henrys short stories bearing his trademark irony, comic misunderstandings, and surprise endings. They also capture his use of coincidence or chance to create humor in the story. O. Henry wrote about ordinary people in everyday circumstances. The true hero of The Four Million is the city of New York, with its energy, compassion and kaleidoscope of human emotions. O. Henry focuses his curious microscope on the diverse lives of various residents of this metropolis. A few protagonists claim idle-rich status, but most represent the middle class or poverty-stricken milieus. He is quoted as once saying, There are stories in everything. Ive got some of my best yarns from park benches, lampposts and newspaper stands.
Jean Webster
This is a good old murder mystery, full of ghosts and everything else, and it will definitely keep the reader on the edge of their place. Terry is a really funny character. He is definitely the youngest of the two protagonists, and he is ready to prove himself, to do his best when he is disguised or on the trail, some crazy adventure a spontaneous reporter we need more these days.
Frank L. Packard
Written in 1923, this thrilling novel by the thrilling author of the Adventures of Jimmy Dale, teems with intrigue and unforgettable characters. The Four Stragglers is a war story with rockets flaring in the heavens, guns crashing, four men on the battlefield and they meet again afterwards amid mysteries and still greater thrills. In the beginning we meet four allied soldiers, who found themselves lost behind the enemy lines. When story moves on, three of them are running high-class international burglary organization running scams in England and France. They stumble upon the great opportunity to make a big score in one action, and it leads to a complex and thrilling journey to the USA.
Edgar Wallace
The Fourth Plague is an intriguing crime novel that was published in 1913, during the early years of Wallaces career as a novelist. Here again pits a master detective against a powerful crime syndicate, this time with an Italian background. An Italian secret society, burglary, kidnapping, detectives, mysterious artefacts, remarkable coincidences! This is a tale of the Red-Hand, a criminal organization that makes Count Festini, its secret head, the most dangerous man in Europe. But for his hated eldest son, the Red-Hands plans for the downfall of the country may succeed. The cat and mouse game about high treasure, a beautiful woman and a bio-weapon never really leaves the ground and grips the reader.
Valentine Williams
A hard boiled mystery and suspense thriller set in Ukraine. A rich American magnate Stephen Selmar and his daughter Melissa are lured into Rumania by an arms dealer, the sinister Barm de Bahl "The Fox", as part of a plot to boost the arms industry by fomenting a war between Rumania and Russia. Enter the British Secret Service... "The Fox Prowls" by Valentine Williams is a fine bunch of villains cooking up international deviltry in romantic surroundings; inextinguishable hero; lovely gal; continuous thrills. In it, a bit of mystery with a rundown Bessarabian castle, a hidden treasure, a gang of international crooks, and an officer of the British Intelligence, disguised as a crude chauffeur. Highly recommended for people who like to treat a mystery story as a solvable riddle!
The Framing of Inspector Denvers
Aidan de Brune
Cain, Sydneys most daring thief, has defeated Inspector Denvers; but can he defeat the only man to escape from Sing-Sings death row? The Framing of Inspector Denvers is a story packed with great adventure and the author Aidan de Brune keeps the action moving along swiftly, as he always did, and it highlights de Brunes unmatched skill in setting a pulse-pounding pace. Aidan de Brune was a big name in Australian literature but is forgotten today. He was a prolific author who wrote in a variety of genres. His writing would inevitably have found a home in pulp books and magazines if Australia had any such thing in the 20s and 30s.
E.F. Benson
From the Mayfair society, everyone is a prominent representative of high society. Sir Louis and Lady Mary the Tagetes transform snobbery into an art form. Mr. Sandow, the secular vicar, who seems to be interested in everything but real spirituality. Everyone eagerly fights for social status in high society, unnoticing many dangerous details.
John Buchan
Set during the Napoleonic Wars, The Free Fishers is classic Buchan and his last historical novel. Its a fast-paced tale of treason, espionage and romance. Anthony Lammas, a professor at the St. Andrews University, finds himself involved in a web of intrigue that threatens the whole country. A conspiracy to betray Englands defences to Napoleonic agents is discovered by Lammas, a young professor who sets out to save his former students appearing to be in grave danger. Youll smile at the story and the old-fashioned dialogue at times but thoroughly enjoy the pace of the story, the straightforwardness of the characters villains, heroes and the dramatic varierty of their experiences. As a historian and a novelist he lovingly creates the reality of the time interwined with the intrigue and motives of the characters that make up this excellent novel.
Edgar Wallace
When Inspector Tanner is called in to investigate a ruthless murder at Marks Priory, the grand ancestral home of the Lebanon family, he quickly discovers that nothing is quite as it seems. The household is controlled by the family physician, the footmen behave more like guests than servants and the secretary Isla is afraid for her life. Why are these two American toughs employed as footmen? Why is Lady Lebanon so unwilling to answer any questions? What he does know is that the only obviously innocent person is utterly consumed with terror. Here is Inspector Tanners first real clue. As Tanner moves closer to the heart of the mystery he uncovers a shocking and closely guarded secret.