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2) Tono-Bungay
Philosophically minded science fiction fans will rejoice in this novel from H.G. Wells, the author regarded as one of the originators of the genre who wrote classic gems such as The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, and The Island of Doctor Moreau. Though more grounded in realism than some of his other works, Tono-Bungay offers an interesting look into the morality of scientific discovery.
H. G. Wells' Ann Veronica, first published in 1909, looks at political and feminist issues of the time. It's heroine goes from being a naive young girl into becoming a picture of the New Woman. The novel caused a stir when it was released because of the main character's feminist outlook and because her name was similar to Amber Reeves, with whom Wells was thought to be having an affair.
Can't get enough of Little Women? Try Marjorie's Three Gifts, a similarly engaging and heartwarming tale from Louisa May Alcott, the author who brought to life Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, some of the most beloved characters in American literature. This short story incorporates enchanted fairy-tale elements that will please fans of classic fables such as Cinderella.
Though best known for creating the series featuring the unforgettable adventurer Allan Quatermain, author Henry Rider Haggard's other action-adventure heroes are just as compelling and believable. The People of the Mist recounts explorer Leonard Outram's exploits in Africa. Haggard loyalists and other fans of the genre are sure to delight in this thrill-a-minute page-turner.
6) Jess
Set in nineteenth-century South Africa during a time of conflict, deprivation and hardship, the tale Jess is something of a departure from the typical formula of H. Rider Haggard's novels. Following the travails of a pair of sisters who are fighting to save their family's farm, Jess is a captivating look at the brave sacrifices that so many people are called on to make in wartime.
H. G. Wells' comic 1910 novel, The History of Mr. Polly, stars Alfred Polly, a timid man who is more successful at daydreaming than working in the local draper's shops. He marries a woman he's not really in love with, despite being in love with another, and together they attempt to create a success of their own shop while slowly making one another miserable. But on the night of a fire everything changes in Mr. Polly's life.
Dive into the scandalous roman à clef that shocked the world. Based in part on H. G. Wells' own alleged affair with a much-younger woman, the novel The New Machiavelli follows the rise to power of brilliant politician Richard Remington, whose ascendance is stopped in its tracks when his extramarital dalliance is revealed.
Science fiction master H. G. Wells was never one to shy away from complex or controversial topics, and in this classic novel, he takes on Christianity. Though The Soul of a Bishop takes place on Earth and is wholly free of invading alien hordes or other fantastical creatures, it does deal with supernatural and mystical topics, delving into the how and why of religious belief.
10) Beyond the City
Conan Doyle departs quite drastically from his male-centric Sherlock Holmes in Beyond the City; it deals with ideas of women's liberation in Victorian England. Three families are drawn together in the countryside by a series of misfortunes, romantic ideas and intriguing events.
11) The Sea Hawk
The Sea Hawk is a seafaring adventure set at the end of the sixteenth century. A retired Cornish gentleman is betrayed by his jealous half-brother and ends up a slave on a Spanish galley. He is freed by Barbary pirates and he joins their crew, swearing vengeance on his brother. The pirates name him "Sakr-el-Bahr": the hawk of the sea.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes collects Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first twelve short stories about his famous London detective. It begins with the first meeting of Holmes and his sidekick Watson, who narrates the stories. Doyle was the first to employ the sidekick technique, thereby creating a character in just as much suspense and awe as his readership at the mental escapades of the erratic, terrifyingly intelligent Holmes.
Although Arthur Conan Doyle is best remembered as one of the originators of the mystery and detective genre, his prodigious imagination was not limited to the case histories of super-sleuth Sherlock Holmes. The Doings of Raffles Haw is a fantasy novel that explores the nebulous origins of the fortune of a mysterious millionaire, delving into the shadowy scientific process that Raffles Haws has used to amass his extravagant wealth.
Today, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's place in the literary canon is secured by his series of detective stories featuring the idiosyncratic but brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes. However, Doyle's literary talents were wide-ranging, and he dabbled in many genres over the course of his career. The Firm of Girdlestone is a novel in the classic suspense tradition in which a greedy father-and-son team resort to terrible crimes to keep their floundering
...H.G. Wells is best remembered as a central figure in the development of the science fiction genre and as the creator of such works as The Time Machine, The Island of Doctor Moreau, and The War of the Worlds. However, much of his literary output was more conventional in nature, and he published a number of novels dealing with interpersonal relationships and social themes. Many critics regard The Secret Places of the Heart as
...Though acclaimed as the writer of the Sherlock Holmes series of detective stories, Arthur Conan Doyle also wrote a series of mysteries set in past historical eras. Uncle Bernac: A Memory of the Empire offers an insightful glimpse into the manners and mores of the Napoleonic age, as well as a heaping helping of the suspense for which the author is best known.
Fans of Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic Little Women will delight in the companion volume Comic Tragedies. Following up on Jo and Meg's love of drama and melodrama, this book presents a series of short plays that the girls are said to have written and staged themselves. It's an exhilarating peek into the vivid imaginations of the March family.
Anne Shirley, the orphan child who brings happiness and love into the lives of her foster family, is one of the most beloved heroines in all of literature. This wildly imaginative, red-headed chatterbox tries to fit into the narrow confines of Victorian expectations, but her exuberant spirit keeps leaping delightfully beyond the bounds.
When Marilla Cuthbert and her brother Matthew find that they are getting too old to work the farm by themselves,
...The Hound of the Baskervilles is a crime novel by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle starring the great detective of Baker Street, Sherlock Holmes. Wealthy landowner Sir Charles Baskerville is found dead in the parkland surrounding his manor. It seems he died of a heart attack, but the footprints of a huge dog are found near his body, and Holmes must unravel the mystery and ensure the safety of Baskerville's heir amid rumors of an other-worldly creature
...The comical Wheels of Chance was written in 1896 at the height of the golden age of the bicycle, when practical and affordable bicycles led to profound social shifts in England. Suddenly people of modest means could travel greater distances for work or even for pleasure, without the limitations of rail schedules, weakening England's rigid class structure and strengthening the movement towards the liberation of women. In the novel, the poorly-paid
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