Wilkie Collins
In The Black Robe, a strikingly original novel from master storyteller Wilkie Collins, what starts out as a night of fun and games turns tragic when a dispute over a card game leads to murder. Desperate to atone for his sin, the perpetrator tries to offer assistance to the victim's family, but instead finds himself enmeshed all the deeper in a web of falsehoods and intrigue. Will he ever be able to extricate himself and move on with his
...Is it morally permissible to conduct often-painful experiments on innocent animals? That contentious debate is still going on today, but it has its roots in the Victorian era, when the issue of 'vivisection' had only recently made its way into the public discourse. In Heart and Science, self-professed animal lover Wilkie Collins uses fiction to mount a compelling attack on animal experimentation. This thought-provoking and entertaining novel
...4) Blind Love
Love is said to be the salve that soothes a damaged soul. But in some cases, an all-consuming intimacy can have the opposite effect, inflaming murderous jealousies and compelling people to act in the most nefarious ways. The relationship at the center of Wilkie Collins' classic novel Blind Love started out innocently enough, but before long, Iris Henley and Lord Harry Norland find themselves doomed by their passion.
The Moonstone is a 19th-century novel by the master of sensation fiction, Wilkie Collins. It is considered, with The Woman in White, to be his best work, and is also commonly seen as the first English detective novel. Many of the standard ground rules for detective fiction can be found in this work, as well as examples of Collins' forward-thinking approach to the treatment of Indians and servants.
Charming and intelligent but somewhat lacking in the purpose and dedication departments, protagonist Frank Softly just can't seem to find a profession that suits him, much to the chagrin of his family. Still, his journey to find himself is full of entertaining adventures and misadventures. Modern-day readers will find a lot to love in Wilkie Collins' A Rogue's Life.
If you like your mysteries with a liberal dash of prurient gossip and high-society drama, be sure to add Wilkie Collins' Jezebel's Daughter to your must-read list. This tautly suspenseful tale full of betrayal and unexpected plot twists is a worthy diversion.
8) Man and Wife
Dig into this juicy domestic drama from famed British novelist and playwright Wilkie Collins. Not only does Man and Wife provide a stunning account of the ups and downs of married life in the Victorian period, it also offers a detailed takedown of the backwards laws and traditions that governed the institution during that era.
This domestic drama from beloved author Wilkie Collins focuses on the abiding power of family, whether by birth or by chance. A profoundly disabled girl is adopted by a loving family, but her true origins are shrouded in mystery. When a few intrepid friends begin trying to find out more about her history, a wholly unexpected chain of events is set into motion.
10) Basil
11) The Evil Genius
Today, divorces are a dime a dozen. In the nineteenth century, however, the implosion of a family unit was a much rarer event, and the implications of such an occurrence often spread far beyond the small group of people who were directly involved. Settle in for this juicy domestic drama from Wilkie Collins, friend and protege of Charles Dickens.
In addition to his reputation as one of the important early innovators in the genre of detective fiction, Wilkie Collins is recognized as being one of the first writers to feature female sleuths in his stories. In The Law and the Lady, Collins' heroine succeeds in cracking a tough case that has left professional investigators stumped.
13) After Dark
Curl up with After Dark, the first collection of early detective fiction master Wilkie Collins' short stories. Including a diverse array of mysteries, tales of murder, and family drama in wartime and other chaotic settings, this engrossing collection is sure to have something that appeals to every reader.
Do you believe in fate? Is true love powerful enough to overcome even the most adverse of circumstances? These thought-provoking questions form the thematic core of the novel The Two Destinies by master storyteller Wilkie Collins. Two star-crossed lovers fall head-over-heels for one another, but soon fall prey to a seemingly insurmountable series of mishaps and misadventures. Will they wind up together eventually?
17) The New Magdalen
Regarded as one of the finest storytellers of the Victorian era, Wilkie Collins was able to inject realism and insightful commentary into his tales without detracting at all from their page-turning readability. In the tightly plotted novel The New Magdalen, Collins takes on several weighty social issues that give readers a fascinating glimpse into life in nineteenth-century Britain.
An early innovator in the genre of mystery and detective fiction, Wilkie Collins gained an enormous readership during his lifetime. Though many readers became hooked on his work due to his meticulous plotting and mastery with suspense, critics say that Collins' popularity endured as a result of his incisive social insight and commentary. The Queen of Hearts is a masterpiece of Victorian-era detective fiction and a rewarding read for fans
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