PURPLE HEATHER By Alan St. Aubyn
The late Hawley Smart was a master of the true sporting novel, and Alan St. Aubyn has run him very close in "Purple Heather." In this she has given us a picture of the wilds of Exmoor the whole year round, with vivid descriptions of some of the inhabitants, and at the same time has woven about them a story of very human interest which centres on the packs of stag and fox hounds.
THE SECRET SYNDICATE By Fred Whishaw
To the English reader there is a perennial fascination in the conditions of life in the mighty realms of the Czar, and few English writers have a more intimate knowledge of the various revolutionary currents in Russian affairs than Mr. Fred Whishaw. The action of "The Victims" transpires mainly in St. Petersburg, and the characters are wholly Russian. A young journalist and a young girl of the landed class are the central figures, and around these two are described the events which culminate in the recent peasant revolt. The story is graphically told, and has the air of being a veritable transcript from life.
THE PLEASURE MONGER By C. Ranger-Gull
The novel which tells of a complete, triumphant, and overwhelming success is always delightful to read. This is the case in Mr. Ranger Gull's new book, "The Pleasure Monger," one which will be found to be the best of all the brilliant studies of modern life which this author has given us. The character studies are especially strong and vivid, and the keen love-interest, which runs like a scarlet thread through the warp and woof of the tale, is novel and daring. It is very rarely, moreover, that a well-known author lifts the veil of the modern literary life and shows it as it really is. Stories which deal in part with literary life are nearly always written by amateurs. "The Pleasure Monger," in short, will be found full of force, brilliancy, and interest.
THE SIN OF GABRIELLE By Mrs. Coulson Kernahan
In this story Mrs. Kernahan has shown in the character of Gabrielle Desturnelle a beautiful young French adventuress, who has all the seductive charm of "Fanchette," without that heroine's innocence. The story shows how, by her arts and unscrupulous cleverness, she wrecks the life of Donovan Fitzgerald, a man of high ideals. The heartlessness of Gabrielle is put forth with power, while the nobility of Fitzgerald will win the sympathy of the reader.
THE SECOND BEST By Coralie Stanton & Heath Hosken