In utter disbelief, Jane Marple read the letter addressed to her from the recently deceased Mr. Rafiel — an acquaintance she had met briefly on her travels. He had left instructions for her to investigate a crime after his death. The only problem was, he had failed to tell her who was involved or where and when the crime had been committed. It was most intriguing.

Soon she is faced with a new crime — the ultimate crime — murder. It seems someone is adamant that past evils remain buried...

An ingenious tour de force: an utterly compelling historical mystery with a plot that twists and turns and keeps the reader guessing until the very last page.

We are in England in the 1660s. Charles II has been restored to the throne following years of civil war and Cromwell's short-lived republic. Oxford is the intellectual seat of the country, a place of great scientific, religious, and political ferment. A fellow of New College is found dead in suspicious circumstances. A young woman is accused of his murder. We hear the story of the death from four witnesses: an Italian physician intent on claiming credit for the invention of blood transfusion; the son of an alleged Royalist traitor; a master cryptographer who has worked for both Cromwell and the king; and a renowned Oxford antiquarian. Each tells his own version of what happened. Only one reveals the extraordinary truth.

Holmes is hired by the King of Bohemia to recover blackmail evidence, held by the woman whom the king once promised to marry, but who he abandoned for a woman of noble birth.

Join Sherlock Holmes and his faithful companion Dr. John Watson as they embark on a thrilling adventure filled with twists, turns, and unexpected revelations. Set against the backdrop of Victorian London, A Scandal in Bohemia follows Holmes as he is enlisted by the King of Bohemia to retrieve a compromising photograph from the clutches of the beautiful and elusive Irene Adler.

Themes of deception, betrayal, and cunning abound as Holmes employs his keen powers of deduction to unravel the mystery surrounding Adler and her elusive past. With his razor-sharp intellect and unparalleled powers of observation, Holmes navigates a web of intrigue and deceit, uncovering secrets that threaten to shake the very foundations of society.

Detective Alex Cross is back—and he's in love. But his happiness is threatened by a series of chilling murders in Washington, D.C., murders with a pattern so twisted they leave investigators reeling.

Cross's pursuit of the killer produces a suspect, a British diplomat named Geoffrey Shafer. But proving he's the murderer becomes a potentially deadly task. As Shafer engages in a brilliant series of surprising counter moves, Alex and his fiancée become hopelessly entangled with the most memorable nemesis Cross has ever faced.

A Small Death in Lisbon is a complex literary thriller that intertwines two gripping narratives set in different eras. The story masterfully shifts between 1941 Germany and 1999 Lisbon, offering a rich tapestry of historical intrigue and modern-day mystery.

In 1941, Klaus Felsen, an industrialist, is coerced by the SS high command to travel to Lisbon to oversee the smuggling of wolfram, a critical element for Hitler's blitzkrieg. Neutral Portugal becomes a battleground of clandestine operations, where business trumps alliances.

Fast forward to 1999, where the brutal murder of a young woman, Catarina Oliveira, on a Lisbon beach draws in Inspector Ze Coelho, a widower with a daughter. As Coelho delves into the case, he uncovers layers of personal and historical secrets, connecting past sins with present-day consequences.

This novel paints a vivid portrait of Lisbon's transformation post-1974 revolution and the lingering scars from World War II, seen through the eyes of both Germans and Portuguese. The narrative is leisurely yet compelling, leading to an extraordinary climax as the two timelines converge.

Club Nautico is an exclusive Spanish resort for the rich, retired British. After five people die in an unexplained house fire, club manager Frank Prentice pleads guilty-but nobody believes him, least of all the police. When Frank's brother Charles arrives, intent on unravelling the mystery, gradually he uncovers the secret world behind the resort's civilized image.

Features a man who finds himself drawn into a network of drugs, pornography, and murder in a Spanish resort.

Bigamy, child abandonment, deception, theft, murder, and insanity all take part in Mary Elizabeth Braddon's novel. Her over-the-top drama was one of the most popular novels of the mid-1800s and provides an interesting portrayal of both class and gender issues as they intersect within the domestic sphere.

Lady Audley's Secret was one of the first and most successful sensation novels of the late 19th century. A young gentleman of leisure, Robert Audley, is spurred into action when his friend George Talboys goes missing from Audley Court. As an amateur detective, Robert travels the length and breadth of the country, only to discover that the answer to the mystery lies in the true identity of his uncle's wife, Lady Audley. True to its genre, the novel brings danger home to the private sphere of the country house and questions the unassailable boundaries of class. It is also a strident feminine criticism of the times, though debate still rages as to whether Braddon tidies her questions away too neatly at the end of the novel.

When beautiful young Lucy Graham accepts the hand of Sir Michael Audley, her fortune and her future look secure. But Lady Audley's past is shrouded in mystery, and Sir Michael's nephew Robert has vague forebodings. When Robert's good friend George Talboys suddenly disappears, he is determined to find him, and to unearth the truth. His quest reveals a tangled story of lies and deception, crime and intrigue, whose sensational twists turn the conventional picture of Victorian womanhood on its head. Can Robert's darkest suspicions really be true?

The Dark Kingdom is preparing itself for the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy—the arrival of a new Queen, a Witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But this new ruler is young, and very susceptible to influence and corruption; whoever controls her controls the Darkness. And now, three sworn enemies begin a ruthless game of politics and intrigue, magic and betrayal, and the destiny of an entire world is at stake.

Forced to abandon his undercover role as leader of the Dendarii Mercenaries, Miles Vorkosigan persuades Emperor Gregor to appoint him Imperial Auditor so he can penetrate Barrayar’s intelligence and security operations (ImpSec). Simon Illyan, head of ImpSec and Miles’ former boss, is failing physically and mentally, and Miles sets out to find out why -- and who, if anyone, is behind Illyan’s rapid decline.

Miles is one of the genre’s most enterprising and engaging heroes, embarking on a journey filled with mystery and intrigue. This novel is a Hugo and Nebula Award finalist, showcasing Bujold's exceptional talent in weaving complex plots and deep emotional narratives.

A power revered by presidents and kings, a fortune unsurpassed by few people on earth: all that ended for Harry Stanford the day he mysteriously—and fatally—plunged from his luxury yacht into the Mediterranean Sea.

Then, back home in Boston, as the family gathers to grieve for his memory and to war over his legacy, a stunningly beautiful young woman appears. She claims to be Stanford's long-lost daughter and entitled to her share of his estate.

Now, flaming with intrigue and passion through the glamorous preserves of the world's super rich, the ultimate game of wits begins, for stakes too dazzling and deadly to imagine.

Nearly five centuries ago, a fleet of boats landed mysteriously on an island in an inland sea. There, an ancient Andean people hid a golden hoard greater than that of any pharaoh, then they and their treasure vanished into history -- until now.

Fast forward to 1998, the Andes Mountains of Peru. DIRK PITT dives into an ancient sacrificial pool, saving two American archaeologists from certain drowning. But his death-defying rescue is only the beginning, as it draws the intrepid Pitt into a vortex of darkness and danger, corruption and betrayal.

A sinister crime syndicate has traced the long-lost treasure -- worth almost a billion dollars -- from the Andes to the banks of a hidden underground river flowing beneath a Mexican desert. Driven by burning greed and a ruthless bloodlust, the syndicate is racing to seize the golden prize...and to terminate the one man who can stop them: DIRK PITT!

In the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington, an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. Jonathan Pine is ready to stand up and be counted in the fight against this ultimate heart of darkness.

His mission takes him from the cliffs of west Cornwall, via northern Quebec and the Caribbean, to the jungles of post-Noriega Panama. His quarry is the worst man in the world.

Welcome to a new era of espionage, where the habits and rules forged in the darkest days of the Cold War are applied to an even more harrowing end. This is Roper's world—a world of illegal arms dealers and drug smugglers, men whose ruthlessness is matched only by their hunger for unlimited wealth.

Enter Leonard Burr, former British intelligence officer turned international policeman. Burr recruits Pine to his cause, launching him on an undercover odyssey that takes him from Zurich to the desolate coast of Cornwall, and eventually to a village in Quebec where he obtains the identity that will be his ticket of entry to Roper's island hideaway in the Bahamas.

In what is perhaps John le Carré's greatest work to date, The Night Manager brings to life a whole new era of intrigue, brilliantly conceived by the undisputed master of the genre.

The Day After Tomorrow is a gripping thriller that intricately weaves together three stories of international intrigue. In the first, a doctor must bravely confront the man who killed his father. Meanwhile, a detective is on the trail of a series of horrific murders, each more shocking than the last. Finally, a shadowy international organization is devising a master plan of apocalyptic dimensions, threatening to change the world forever.

This novel spans two continents and five decades, drawing the reader into a world of suspense and adventure. It's a tale of conspiracy and mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.

With more than two million copies in print, Nick Bantock's trilogy of romantic intrigue is now available as a set, beautifully packaged in an illustrated slipcase created by the author.

A lovely gift for those new to the saga of the mysterious lovers, this distinctive collection also makes an enduring keepsake for devoted fans.

Operation Doomsday is now active. Commander Robert Bellamy of US Naval Intelligence is dispatched on a top secret mission. A weather balloon carrying sensitive military information has crashed in Switzerland. Bellamy must locate the ten witnesses to the incident so that they can be sworn to secrecy.

But as he conducts his search, Bellamy begins to suspect that he, too, is being hunted by an unknown and lethal force. What he was told about the balloon was only one part of an almost unbelievable happening...

From Washington to Zurich, Rome, and Paris, the story unfolds to reveal Bellamy's past: why the woman he loves the most cannot return his love, why his friends become his deadly enemies, and why the world must never learn the incredible secret hidden on the Swiss Alps.

In The Other Side of Midnight, they played the ultimate game of love, lust, and death.
Now, in Memories of Midnight, the survivors meet to play one last time...

Shadowed by tragedy and burdened by amnesia, a beautiful woman desperately tries to return to reality. She is Catherine Douglas, destined to once again challenge the cruel, charismatic power of Constantin Demiris, the Greek shipping tycoon who murdered Catherine's husband.

Now, in the glittering capitals and carefree playgrounds of post-war Europe, Demiris sets his deadly sights on Catherine—and the single, treacherous secret whose shattering truth is known to her alone...

The man known as Cheradenine Zakalwe was one of Special Circumstances' foremost agents, changing the destiny of planets to suit the Culture through intrigue, dirty tricks and military action.

The woman known as Diziet Sma had plucked him from obscurity and pushed him towards his present eminence, but despite all their dealings she did not know him as well as she thought.

The drone known as Skaffen-Amtiskaw knew both of these people. It had once saved the woman's life by massacring her attackers in a particularly bloody manner. It believed the man to be a lost cause. But not even its machine could see the horrors in his past.

Ferociously intelligent, both witty and horrific, Use of Weapons is a masterpiece of science fiction.

In the exclusive, glittering world of business superstars, Nick Sinclair was a legend...

The ruggedly handsome president of Global Industries handled his business the way he handled his women — with charm, daring, and ruthless self-control. A man used to the very best, Nick hired Lauren Danner and assumed the proud beauty would soon be another easy conquest. But Lauren's flashing wit and rare spirit dazzled him — and slowly, against his will, he was intrigued, challenged — and in love.

Yet Lauren was living a lie, a charade that became more dangerous with every passing moment. Trapped in a web of deceit, she fought her growing love for Nick. Her secret could destroy his fragile trust — and the promise of life with the most compelling man she had ever met!

Magic and murder engulf the realm of Kelewan. Fierce warlords ignite a bitter blood feud to enslave the empire of Tsuranuanni. Meanwhile, in the opulent Imperial courts, assassins and spy-masters plot cunning and devious intrigues against the rightful heir.

Now, Mara, a young, untested Ruling lady, is called upon to lead her people in a heroic struggle for survival. But first, she must rally an army of rebel warriors, form a pact with the alien cho-ja, and marry the son of a hated enemy. Only then can Mara face her most dangerous foe of all—in his own impregnable stronghold.

An epic tale of adventure and intrigue, Daughter of the Empire is fantasy of the highest order by two of the most talented writers in the field today.

Deep in the heart of Russia, a group of casually dressed young men are learning a different kind of lesson. The undergraduates sprawled around a game board aren't chilling out on campus: the young KGB agents attending the Charm School are brushing up on their American.

When a young tourist goes to the aid of a stranger on a dark Russian road, he is astonished to find a fellow American on the run. The man has been missing for over a decade, plucked from the jungles of Vietnam to become an unwilling tutor at the institution. Now his former students are poised to strike at the heart of America.

Garion has slain the evil God Torak and been crowned King of Riva. The Prophecy was fulfilled—or so it seemed. While the strange child Errand was growing up in the Vale of Aldur with Polgara and Durnik, showing only occasional flashes of inexplicable knowledge and power, Garion was learning to rule and to be the husband of his fiery little Queen Ce’Nedra.

Eleven years passed. Then suddenly the Voice of Prophecy cried out a warning: “Beware Zandramas!” Not even Belgarath the Sorcerer knew who or what Zandramas was. But Garion discovered hints in a previously obscured part of the Mrin Codex. Worse, he learned that the Dark Prophecy was still waging its ancient struggle against the Prophecy of Light.

Again, great evil was brewing in the East. And again, Garion found himself a pawn, caught between the two ancient Prophecies, with the fate of the world somehow resting on him.

With Elspeth, the heir to the throne of Valdemar, come of marriageable age, Talia, the Queen's Own Herald, returns to court to find Queen and heir beset by diplomatic intrigue as various forces vie for control of Elspeth's future.

But just as Talia is about to uncover the traitor behind all these intrigues, she is sent off on a mission to the neighboring kingdom, chosen by the Queen to investigate the worth of a marriage proposal from Prince Ancar.

To her horror, Talia soon discovers there is far more going on at Prince Ancar’s court than just preparation for a hoped-for royal wedding. For a different magic than that of the Heralds is loose in Ancar’s realm—an evil and ancient sorcery that may destroy all of Valdemar unless Talia can send warning to her Queen in time!

Windmills of the Gods is a classic best-selling thriller that races from the halls of the White House to the romance-filled streets of Paris, and the shady menace of Cold War Bucharest. A young woman, a newly appointed ambassador, finds herself facing unseen and powerful enemies plotting her and her children's destruction.

Mary Ashley, a beautiful and accomplished scholar, has suddenly become the U.S. ambassador to an Iron Curtain country. She is on the glinting edge of East-West confrontation and is about to dramatically change the course of world events if she lives.

Marked for death by the world's most proficient and mysterious assassin, Mary is plunged into a nightmare of espionage, kidnapping, and terror. In this thrilling journey, only two people—both powerfully attractive and ultimately enigmatic men—can offer her help. But one of them wants to kill her.

The action races from Washington D.C. to Buenos Aires, from Paris and Rome to Bucharest, as Mary struggles against her unseen assassins and the apparent treachery of the men she trusts. This is a gripping tale of suspense and international intrigue that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Whirlwind presents the story of three intense weeks in Tehran during February 1979. These weeks are filled with fanaticism, passion, self-sacrifice, and heartbreak.

Caught between the revolutionaries and the forces of international intrigue is a team of professional pilots. They are ordered to flee to safety with their helicopters, navigating through a city on the brink of chaos.

Judd Stevens is a psychoanalyst faced with the most critical case of his life. If he does not penetrate the mind of a murderer, he will find himself arrested for murder or murdered himself...

Two people closely involved with Dr. Stevens have already been killed. Is one of his patients responsible? Someone overwhelmed by his problems? A neurotic driven by compulsion? A madman?

Before the murderer strikes again, Judd must strip away the mask of innocence the criminal wears, uncover his inner emotions, fears, and desires — expose the naked face beneath...

A minor road accident landed county prosecutor Katie DeMaio in Westlake Hospital. That night, from her window, she thought she saw a man load a woman's body into the trunk of a car... or was it just a sleeping pill-induced nightmare?

At work the next day, Katie began investigating a suicide that looked more like murder. Initial evidence pointed elsewhere, but medical examiner Richard Carroll saw a trail leading to Dr. Edgar Highley. He suspected that the famous doctor's work "curing" infertile women was more than controversial—that it was deceitful, depraved, and often deadly.

But before Richard could tell Katie his fears, she left the office for the weekend and an appointment for routine surgery... in Dr. Highley's operating room.

It was a cloudless summer day in the year nineteen hundred. Everyone at Appleyard College for Young Ladies agreed it was just right for a picnic at Hanging Rock. After lunch, a group of three of the girls climbed into the blaze of the afternoon sun, pressing on through the scrub into the shadows of Hanging Rock. Further, higher, till at last they disappeared. They never returned.

Whether Picnic at Hanging Rock is fact or fiction, the reader must decide for themselves. This mysterious and subtly erotic tale inspired the iconic 1975 film of the same name by Peter Weir. A beguiling landmark of Australian literature, it stands with Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, and Jeffrey Eugenides' The Virgin Suicides as a masterpiece of intrigue.

Titus Groan is seven years old. Lord and heir to the crumbling castle Gormenghast. A gothic labyrinth of roofs and turrets, cloisters and corridors, stairwells and dungeons, it is also the cobwebbed kingdom of Byzantine government and age-old rituals, a world primed to implode beneath the weight of centuries of intrigue, treachery, and death. Steerpike, who began his climb across the roofs when Titus was born, is now ascending the spiral staircase to the heart of the castle, and in his wake lie imprisonment, manipulation, and murder.

Gormenghast is the second volume in Mervyn Peake’s widely acclaimed trilogy, but it is much more than a sequel to Titus Groan—it is an enrichment and deepening of that book.

The Gormenghast Trilogy ranks as one of the twentieth century’s most remarkable feats of imaginative writing.

I have noticed that sometimes I frighten people; what they really fear is themselves. They think it is I who scare them, but it is the dwarf within them, the ape-faced manlike being who sticks up his head from the depths of their souls.

Pär Lagerkvist's richly philosophical novel The Dwarf is an exploration of individual and social identity. The novel, set in a time when Italian towns feuded over the outcome of the last feud, centers on a social outcast, the court dwarf Piccoline. From his special vantage point, Piccoline comments on the court's prurience and on political intrigue as the town is gripped by a siege.

Gradually, Piccoline is drawn deeper and deeper into the conflict, and he inspires fear and hate around him as he grows to represent the fascination of the masses with violence.

La villa est magnifique, l'été brûlant, la Méditerranée toute proche. Cécile a dix-sept ans. Elle ne connaît de l'amour que des baisers, des rendez-vous, des lassitudes. Pas pour longtemps. Son père, veuf, est un adepte joyeux des liaisons passagères et sans importance. Ils s'amusent, ils n'ont besoin de personne, ils sont heureux. La visite d'une femme de cœur, intelligente et calme, vient troubler ce délicieux désordre. Comment écarter la menace ? Dans la pinède embrasée, un jeu cruel se prépare.

C'était l'été 1954. On entendait pour la première fois la voix sèche et rapide d'un « charmant petit monstre » qui allait faire scandale. la deuxième moitié du XXe siècle commençait. Elle serait à l'image de cette adolescente déchirée entre le remords et le culte du plaisir.

Elizabeth is a brilliant loner with a troubling secret she doesn't even know. As if the trauma of her mother being abducted before her eyes as a young girl wasn't enough, the small town she lives in thinks she’s crazy. That all changed when she met Michael, a mysterious and handsome man who identified with her like no one else before.

Michael’s long-time friend Vincent visits and drops the bombshell of a lifetime on Elizabeth and her world becomes completely unraveled. Vincent’s information has revealed the world for what it is; a place where the impossible is real, and myths and legends walk slyly in shadow. A world that Elizabeth will learn she too is a member.

Now, the three are caught up in a thousand-year-long conspiracy they never could have imagined. The three must rely on one another and the secret connection they all share if they have a chance to survive.

Would you help a desperate young woman knocking on your door? As a security guard, do you really have a choice?

A desperate young woman is knocking on the door of the Israeli consulate in Boston, seeking asylum, claiming that she is the only survivor of an Israeli spy network. The gate remains locked, but a security guard, who falls in love with her, is trying unsuccessfully to rescue her. He embarks on a discovery trail, meeting tough American and Israeli government agents, cynical merchants, and passionate dreamers. By the end of the trail, he discovers the woman and the truth that lies underneath her story and his own life.

Dancing Bear is a political thriller, in which the author managed to bring in his life experiences into the story and create a fast-paced read with twists and turns. The story ripples with things just under the surface, waiting to be revealed by the reader.

Lieber Herr Miggel,

Streitgenossen habe ich genossen über den 1. Mai, sehr gut wie Familienumfeld und Charakter zusammen kommen, die Rivalitäten innerhalb und zwischen den Kanzleien, die Komik der präzisen Erfassung der steuerlichen Problematik des Lösegeldes, alles um nur nicht auf den Punkt zu kommen, glaubhaft wie größte jurisitische Rationalität bemüht wird um höchste Irratonalität anzugehen.

Das steigert sich alles schön bis zur Mitte, dann treten die Streitgenossen und mit ihnen die Story auf der Stelle. Auch das überraschende Ende ist nicht ganz so überraschend, man hat irgendso eine zweite ebene erwartet, wenn auch nicht diese. Das schwächt den pay-off (Hornberger Schiessen).

Sicher gute Vorlage für einen TV Krimi/Gesellschaftsdrama, allerdings in USA eher als bei uns; ich höre die Anwaltsserien haben hier wenig Zuspruch, bin da ber kein Spezialist. Jedenfalls eine empfehlenswerte Lektüre.

Kompliment
Ihr Volker Schlöndorff

It only seems to start Theo Lindner, an internationally active law firm partner and father, an ordinary working day: In an unexpected meeting scheduled, he learns that his colleague Joachim Peters has been the victim of a kidnapping - the 20 million euro ransom to the members of the Board of their private pay.

Within the firm a thrilling tug of war starts at the adequate handling of the emergency, on the one hand, anyone can associate a potential victim of the kidnap victims to identify the other hand, see all their material well-being threatened for years to come.

The situation is alarming and, as encrypted, the second sign of life references to Peters' whereabouts, and he seems to contain Theo Lindner, with whom he privately nothing extraordinary, explicitly send out greetings.

A breathtaking, exciting thriller in the legal environment, authentic and psychologically brilliant.

Nur scheinbar beginnt für Theo Lindner, Partner einer international agierenden Anwaltskanzlei und Familienvater, ein ganz normaler Arbeitstag in Berlin: In einer unvorhergesehen anberaumten Sitzung erfährt er, dass sein Kollege Joachim Peters Opfer einer Entführung geworden ist – die 25 Millionen DM Lösegeld sollen die Mitglieder der Sozietät aus ihrem Privatvermögen berappen.

Innerhalb der Sozietät beginnt ein nervenaufreibendes Tauziehen um den adäquaten Umgang mit der Notlage, denn einerseits kann sich jeder Teilhaber als potenzielles Opfer mit dem Entführten identifizieren, andererseits empfinden alle ihr materielles Wohlergehen auf Jahre hinaus bedroht.

Die Lage spitzt sich zu, als das zweite Lebenszeichen verschlüsselte Hinweise auf Peters’ Aufenthaltsort zu enthalten scheint und er Theo Lindner, mit dem ihn privat nichts außergewöhnlich verbindet, explizit Grüße zukommen lässt …

Ein atemberaubend spannender Krimi im Juristen-Milieu, authentisch und psychologisch brillant.

Matilde Martínez es una pediatra decidida a cambiar el mundo. Eliah Al-Saud es un soldado profesional, demasiado cínico para creer que es posible cambiarlo. Sin embargo, cuando Eliah y Matilde se conocen, la atracción es innegable, y, pese a sus diferencias, caen rendidos ante la pasión que los domina.

Su romance se convertirá en una aventura peligrosa, con el conflicto palestino-israelí y una amenaza atómica como telones de fondo. Una adictiva novela contemporánea en la que dos personajes intensos y cautivadores lucharán por sus vidas y las de sus seres queridos, pero ¿conseguirán también salvar su amor?

Two people, each with a secret which could end in death; her by his hand, he in an English prison. One knows the truth, one will find out. When they meet, it will be an explosive seventeenth century, high seas, action adventure, intrigue, and romance.

Patience Douglas was to be the most shy, demur, fragile, docile creature on the face of the earth. In short, everything Patty MacDouglas (Captain Flame) was not. She would dress in the most feminine and frilly dresses, with her hair left long, and she would even use a breathless coy tone of voice to further separate the two personalities...

Terrance Bordeaux was a disappointment to his family, a fop in the truest sense of the word. Traveling at a whim, dressing in whatever the latest fashion and spending his father's wealth without concern, quite unlike the businesslike Terror of the Seas. Fate put the two together; however, could either trust enough to allow the other to see their true self?

'A thing to marvel at, a thing to be grateful for.' A rich American art-collector and his daughter Maggie buy in for themselves and to their greater glory a beautiful young wife and noble husband. They do not know that Charlotte and Prince Amerigo were formerly lovers, nor that on the eve of the Prince's marriage they had discovered, in a Bloomsbury antique shop, a golden bowl with a secret flaw. The superstitious Amerigo, fearing for his gilded future, refuses to accept it as a wedding gift from Charlotte. 'Don't you think too much of "cracks,"' she is later to say to him, 'aren't you too afraid of them? I risk the cracks...' When the golden bowl is broken, Maggie must leave the security of her childhood and try to reassemble the pieces of her shattered happiness.

In this, the last of his three great poetic masterpieces, James combined with a dazzling virtuosity elements of social comedy, of mystery, terror, and myth. The Golden Bowl is the most controversial, ambiguous, and sophisticated of James's novels.

The text of this World's Classics paperback is that of the first English edition (1905). James's Preface is included, and a new introduction, notes, and selected variant readings.

The Light Eaters is an enthralling novel that takes readers on a mysterious journey filled with intrigue and adventure. This captivating story weaves through an intricate plot, drawing readers into a world where every twist and turn keeps them on the edge of their seats.

With each page, the tension builds, and secrets are slowly unveiled, leading to a thrilling climax that will leave readers breathless. It's a tale of discovery, suspense, and the unseen forces that drive us.

Join the characters as they navigate through a landscape of mystery and excitement, where the stakes are high, and the light is both a guide and a threat.

The Tainted Cup is a gripping tale that will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions. Dive into a world of mystery and intrigue as the protagonist navigates through unexpected twists and turns.

With every page you turn, you'll find yourself deeper in a web of secrets and thrills that promise to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Join the adventure and unravel the mysteries hidden within The Tainted Cup!