Gertrude Atherton was born in San Francisco in 1857, and died in 1948. She eloped at the age of nineteen, took up writing against her husband's wishes, and after his death became a protegee of Ambrose Bierce, whose influence can be seen here in those stories, 'The Dead and the Countess', 'Death and the Woman' and 'The Striding Place', which have an overtly supernatural element. 'The Striding Place' was rejected by one editor as 'far too gruesome', but was in Atherton's view 'the best short story I ever wrote'. Elsewhere, ('The Greatest Good of the Greatest Number', 'The Tragedy of a Snob', and 'A Monarch of a Small Survey') the psychological takes precedence over the supernatural.
Gertrude Atherton was born in San Francisco in 1857, and died in 1948. She eloped at the age of nineteen, took up writing against her husband's wishes, and after his death became…Развернуть
"Have you ever heard of the fascination of terror?" This is a unique collection of strange stories from the cunning pen of Wilkie Collins, author of The Woman in White and The Moonstone. The Star attraction is the novella The Haunted Hotel, a clever combination of detective and ghost story set in Venice, a city of grim waterways, dark shadows and death. The action takes place in an ancient palazzo coverted into a modern hotel that houses a grisly secret. The supernatural horror, relentless pace, tight narrative, and a doomed countess characterise and distinguish this powerful tale. The other stories present equally disturbing scenarios, which include ghosts, corpses that move, family curses and perhaps the most unusual of all, the Devil's spectacles, which bring a clarity of vision that can lead to madness.
"Have you ever heard of the fascination of terror?" This is a unique collection of strange stories from the cunning pen of Wilkie Collins, author of The Woman in White and The…Развернуть
The late Victorians had an insatiable appetite for the macabre and sensational: stories of murder and suspense, ghosts, the supernatural and the inexplicable were the stuff of life to them. The two writers in this volume well represent the last decade of the nineteenth century, and are of interest in themselves as well as for their contribution to the chilling of the Victorian spine. Mrs. Alfred Baldwin attempted as a child to contact her dead sister through a séance, and took to writing when stricken by a mysterious illness six weeks after marriage. She was also the mother of the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin. Lettice Galbraith is herself no less mysterious than the stories she wrote. She appeared on the literary scene in 1893, published a novel and two collections of stories in that year, a further story ( The Blue Room ) in 1897, and then nothing more. Readers of 'The Empty Picture Frame', 'The Case of Sir Nigel Otterburne', 'The Trainer's Ghost' and 'The Seance Room' will recognise the Victorian spirit at its finest.
The late Victorians had an insatiable appetite for the macabre and sensational: stories of murder and suspense, ghosts, the supernatural and the inexplicable were the stuff of…Развернуть
This is a book that may have changed history - and still thrills today. One of the first and still one of the finest spy stories ever written, Erskine Childers' book introduced Edwardian readers to the idea of a 'secret service'. In an enthralling tale of a duel among the islands and sandbanks of the North Sea, two amateur investigators and yachtsmen discover sinister preparations off the German coast. At great peril both from an implacable enemy and furious storms at sea, they stake their lives on the strength of their doughty boat, the Dulcibella. Will they fight their way back to England in time to sound a warning? "The Riddle of the Sands" caused a sensation when it appeared in 1903, with statesmen and soldiers drawn into a debate about Britain's readiness to repulse a naval invasion. So strong was its impact that one critic later accused its author of almost single-handedly starting a European war. But its influence would not have been so great if it had not been so powerfully readable, a quality it keeps to this day. Ranked with the greatest work of John Buchan, Joseph Conrad and Ian Fleming, this vintage adventure has lost none of its force.
This is a book that may have changed history - and still thrills today. One of the first and still one of the finest spy stories ever written, Erskine Childers' book introduced…Развернуть
The exploits of Sweeney Todd, 'The Demon Barber of Fleet Street', have been recounted many times in plays, films and musicals, but the origins of the character largely were forgotten for many years. The String of Pearls - the original tale of Sweeney Todd, a classic of British horror - was first published as a weekly serial in 1846-7 by Edward Lloyd, the King of the Penny Dreadfuls. One of the earliest detective stories, it became an important source for Bram Stoker's Dracula, but it was after over 150 years of obscurity that it appeared first in book form in the Wordsworth edition published in 2005.
The one great mystery that has surrounded the book is who the author was - or was it possibly the work of more than one man? In his new introduction to this fully revised second edition, Dick Collins, by means of detailed research of contemporary records, has established finally the identity of the creator of this legendary figure.
So here is the original story of the terrifying owner of that famous London barber-shop, and the secret recipe for Mrs Lovett's delicious pies...
The exploits of Sweeney Todd, 'The Demon Barber of Fleet Street', have been recounted many times in plays, films and musicals, but the origins of the character largely were…Развернуть
Moving, his candle was instantly extinguished, and in the very moment of being left in the darkness he saw, standing in the doorway, a woman, resembling her who had haunted his dream overnight. He rushed with outstretched hands to seize her, but clutched only air. Night Shivers presents a treasure trove of the stories of Mrs J.H.Riddell, one of the greatest Victorian writers of ghost stories. These tales, many of which have been out of print for years, take the reader on fearful journeys into the gloomy haunts of old neglected houses, into a world of prophetic dreams, out onto the wild terrain of Ireland to encounter a frightful banshee and even down into Hell itself. In these fourteen short stories and one novella, The Uninhabited House, there is the distillation of the best and most effective of Riddell s spine-tingling supernatural fiction.
Moving, his candle was instantly extinguished, and in the very moment of being left in the darkness he saw, standing in the doorway, a woman, resembling her who had haunted his…Развернуть
Irish-born playwright and novelist Samuel Beckett, one of the most individual voices of post-war literature, famously said:
'Personally, I have no bone to pick with graveyards, I take the air there willingly, perhaps more willingly than elsewhere, when take the air I must.'
In a similarly phlegmatic spirit, Wordsworth Editions presents this spellbinding collection of chilling Gothic tales of the macabre, all drawn from the rich and varied literary tradition of a culture long in thrall to things supernatural. The Irish, as William Butler Yeats remarked, 'any day prefer a ghost story or a fairy tale to The Times newspaper'. Featuring the imaginative writings of such towering masters of the genre as Sheridan Le Fanu, Bram Stoker, Patrick Kennedy, Thomas Crofton-Croker and George Moore, this volume of ghoulish masterpieces from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is an encapsulation of the arcane lore, magic realism and fantastic creativity of the Irish.
Irish-born playwright and novelist Samuel Beckett, one of the most individual voices of post-war literature, famously said:
'Personally, I have no bone to pick with graveyards, I…Развернуть
This Wordsworth Edition is Edited by and includes an exclusive Introduction by Paul March–Russell.
May Sinclair was an innovator of modern fiction, a late Victorian who was also a precursor to Virginia Woolf. In her Uncanny Stories (1923), Sinclair combines the traditional ghost story with the discoveries of Freud and Einstein. The stories shock, enthral, delight and unsettle.
Two lovers are doomed to repeat their empty affair for the rest of eternity… A female telepath is forced to face the consequences of her actions… The victim of a violent murder has the last laugh on his assailant… An amateur philosopher discovers that there is more to Heaven than meets the eye.
Specially included in this volume is ‘The Intercessor’ (1911), Sinclair's powerful story of childhood and abandoned love, a tale whose intensity compares with that of the Brontës.
This Wordsworth Edition is Edited by and includes an exclusive Introduction by Paul March–Russell.
May Sinclair was an innovator of modern fiction, a late Victorian who was…Развернуть
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