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British Literature — page 66

6,377 public-domain british literature books, summarised. Page 66 of 133.

Cover of The Prince and the Page: A Story of the Last Crusade

The Prince and the Page: A Story of the Last Crusade

Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge

A disgraced young noble conceals his identity to serve the prince who destroyed his family, risking his life to protect the crown until a ultimate sacrifice reshapes his legacy.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The private life, The wheel of time, Lord Beaupré, The visits, Collaboration, Owen Wingrave

The private life, The wheel of time, Lord Beaupré, The visits, Collaboration, Owen Wingrave

Henry James

A refined society turns its back on what makes humans whole, demanding public performance at the cost of the inner self.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of The Prophet's Mantle

The Prophet's Mantle

E. (Edith) Nesbit

A young Russian noble gives up his vast inheritance and security to march into the fire of the revolution, inspiring an idealist Englishwoman to join him despite the grave dangers awaiting them.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Three Brides

The Three Brides

Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary) Yonge

When three brothers bring three very different brides home to the ancestral manor of Compton Poynsett, their mother's quiet tyranny and the weight of county expectations begin to fracture their marriages before they have even settled in.

British Literature8 min read
Cover of Uncanny Tales

Uncanny Tales

Mrs. Molesworth

A collection of eerie, atmospheric tales explores the quiet intrusions of the supernatural into respectable Victorian lives. Ghostly shadows, phantom trains, and inexplicably ticking clocks serve as catalysts for moral awakenings and hidden familial truths.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Victorian Short Stories of Troubled Marriages

Victorian Short Stories of Troubled Marriages

Unknown

Behind closed doors, the Victorian domestic ideal frequently crumbled under the weight of malice, quiet despair, mismatch, and social hypocrisy.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of A Life Sentence: A Novel

A Life Sentence: A Novel

Adeline Sergeant

The wrongly accused man went to prison while the real killer walked free, but guilt weaves a trap that eventually catches every player in the tragedy.

British Literature8 min read
Cover of A Will and No Will

A Will and No Will

Charles Macklin

A sharp pair of mid-eighteenth-century theatrical satires exposes the avarice of greedy heirs and the backbiting malice of London's self-appointed theater critics.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Jack Sheppard: A Romance, Vol. 3 (of 3)

Jack Sheppard: A Romance, Vol. 3 (of 3)

William Harrison Ainsworth

With rapid pace and sensational flair, the story follows a doomed young thief whose miraculous prison escapes, deep maternal devotion, and relentless feud with the monstrous thief-taker Jonathan Wild make him an unforgettable, tragic underdog.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Lodore, Vol. 1 (of 3)

Lodore, Vol. 1 (of 3)

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Longing for domestic peace, an exiled nobleman creates a pristine world for his daughter in the American wilderness, only to find that no wall can keep out the past.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Mrs. Lirriper's Legacy

Mrs. Lirriper's Legacy

Charles Dickens

A big-hearted London landlady journeys to France after receiving a mysterious deathbed inheritance, only to find herself confronting a haunting ghost from her past.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Notes and Queries, Number 179, April 2, 1853.: A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc

Notes and Queries, Number 179, April 2, 1853.: A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc

Various

What begins as an Victorian query over the correct English spelling of the word myth expands into an extraordinary library of antiquarian curiosities, folklore, and spirited scholarly debate.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Oxford poetry, 1919

Oxford poetry, 1919

Unknown

Young poets at Oxford balance the heavy lingering shadow of the Great War against the quiet, timeless beauty of their university halls and countryside.

British Literature5 min read
Cover of Rossmoyne

Rossmoyne

Duchess

Whispers of a bitter past hang over a picturesque Irish village, threatening to break two young lovers who dare to bridge the divide.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Songs of love and empire

Songs of love and empire

E. (Edith) Nesbit

Victorian pageantry and intimate heartbreak meet in a verse collection where imperial triumph constantly shadows the quiet griefs of human love.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Tedious brief tales of Granta and Gramarye

Tedious brief tales of Granta and Gramarye

Arthur Gray

Across the centuries, a Cambridge college harbors quiet terrors and illicit secrets, where forgotten scholars, uneasy ghosts, and desperate monastics leave their shadowy imprints upon cold chapel walls.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of 'That Very Mab'

'That Very Mab'

Andrew Lang

An ancient fairy queen returns to modern Britain only to find her former realm overrun by pedantic scientists, self-serving politicians, and absurd patent religions.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Dinner Club

The Dinner Club

H. C. (Herman Cyril) McNeile

Six friends, each famous in their field, form a dinner club with a twist: after an exquisite meal, they must tell a story from their profession, or pay a fine.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Mother's Recompense, Volume 1: A Sequel to Home Influence

The Mother's Recompense, Volume 1: A Sequel to Home Influence

Grace Aguilar

A devoted mother guides her children through the emotional minefields of London society, learning that true maternal love requires equal parts gentle discipline, deep forgiveness, and patient faith.

British Literature5 min read
Cover of The Path Of Duty

The Path Of Duty

Henry James

Bound by rigid aristocratic expectations, a charismatic Englishman surrenders his heart’s true desire to preserve an innocent woman's life, only to find that doing the noble thing leaves everyone involved quietly, permanently broken.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Trespasser, Complete

The Trespasser, Complete

Gilbert Parker

Bound to no single world, a wild-souled heir from the Canadian wilds claims an English estate, only to find that blood, memory, and ancient ancestral vices yield a far fiercer inheritance than land.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Weird of the Wentworths: A Tale of George IV's Time, Vol. 2

The Weird of the Wentworths: A Tale of George IV's Time, Vol. 2

Johannes Scotus

Driven by family curse, lawless violence, and forbidden longing, a Scottish dynasty unravels across Regency Europe as an outlawed heir returns to claim what is his.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 14

Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume 14

Unknown

Love and war collide across the Scottish Border, where human devotion faces historical upheaval.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Kate Vernon: A Tale. Vol. 1 (of 3)

Kate Vernon: A Tale. Vol. 1 (of 3)

Mrs. Alexander

A cynical young officer finds his assumptions about the world upended when a chance encounter at a grand ball leads him to the quiet, dignified ruin of an old Irish estate. This early Victorian novel captures the tension between the restless ambition of a military life and the enduring, humble grace of a family…

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Lady Cassandra

Lady Cassandra

Vaizey, George de Horne, Mrs.

The stagnant life of a wealthy, unhappy woman is upended by the sudden arrival of a man who forces her to choose between stifling social duty and the allure of a forbidden passion.

British Literature5 min read
Cover of Letters from England, Volume 1 (of 3)

Letters from England, Volume 1 (of 3)

Robert Southey

A foreign traveler traverses the English countryside, observing the peculiar habits, rigid social structures, and architectural oddities of a nation defined by both its immense wealth and its strange, lingering cruelties.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Life in London

Life in London

Edwin Hodder

A young clerk enters the bustling offices of nineteenth-century London with high hopes and strict principles, only to find that the city’s quiet temptations erode his character far faster than open vice.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of Magic words: A tale for Christmas time

Magic words: A tale for Christmas time

Emilie Maceroni

HOOK The barrier between estranged hearts is often nothing more than a fragile silence. This story explores how a few sincere, well-timed words can bridge the widest divides.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of My Lady Peggy Goes to Town

My Lady Peggy Goes to Town

Frances Aymar Mathews

A spirited young woman abandons her needlework for the open road, trading her skirts for a brother’s coat to pursue a dangerous, romantic, and cross-dressing adventure through the heart of Regency London.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Puppets at Large: Scenes and Subjects from Mr Punch's Show

Puppets at Large: Scenes and Subjects from Mr Punch's Show

F. Anstey

A collection of observational sketches capturing the vanities, social posturing, and absurdity of late-Victorian British life, presented with a dry, sharp wit.

British Literature5 min read
Cover of Some Haunted Houses of England & Wales

Some Haunted Houses of England & Wales

Elliott O'Donnell

This collection of accounts explores the liminal spaces between the living and the dead, documenting a series of unsettling encounters within the domestic architecture of England and Wales. It serves as a field guide for those who suspect that the walls of a home might hold more than mere wood and stone.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Tea-Table Talk

Tea-Table Talk

Jerome K. (Jerome Klapka) Jerome

A group of articulate English companions gathers over afternoon tea to trade sharp observations on love, society, and human nature.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Fellowship of the Frog

The Fellowship of the Frog

Edgar Wallace

A criminal mastermind, known only as the Frog, orchestrates a web of terror across London while a deceptively unassuming detective works to dismantle the organization from the shadows.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Little Dream: An Allegory in Six Scenes

The Little Dream: An Allegory in Six Scenes

John Galsworthy

Bound by the silent mountains, an eighteen-year-old girl falls asleep between two suitors and dreams a lifetime of passion, labor, and ultimate stillness.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Martyrdom of Madeline

The Martyrdom of Madeline

Robert Williams Buchanan

A fallen woman fights for survival in a society that forgives the sins of men while relentlessly punishing theirs.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The Merchant of Venice

The Merchant of Venice

William Shakespeare

A desperate loan secured by a pound of human flesh turns a Venetian courtship into a high-stakes battle over law, mercy, and prejudice.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of The Mystery of the Clasped Hands: A Novel

The Mystery of the Clasped Hands: A Novel

Guy Boothby

A sudden inheritance transforms a struggling artist’s life, but a gruesome delivery shortly before his wedding plunges him into a nightmare of accusations and murder.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of The tower

The tower

W. B. (William Butler) Yeats

An aging man confronts the inevitable decay of his body, seeking refuge in the enduring, crystalline perfection of art. He pits the fragility of mortal life against the permanence of the human imagination.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Part 3

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Part 3

Mark Twain

A nineteenth-century engineer finds himself transported to the age of King Arthur, where he attempts to dismantle the rigid structures of medieval tyranny using the tools of modern industry and scientific ingenuity.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of A Life's Morning

A Life's Morning

George Gissing

A young man’s sudden infatuation with a governess unravels a web of social expectation and secret shame, forcing a collision between personal desire and the rigid, suffocating codes of class.

British Literature7 min read
Cover of A Rose of a Hundred Leaves: A Love Story

A Rose of a Hundred Leaves: A Love Story

Amelia E. Barr

This story captures the transformation of a naive, heartbroken girl into a woman of poise, proving that the most enduring love is one that survives the cruelest of separations.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 59, No. 367, May 1846

Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 59, No. 367, May 1846

Various

This mid-nineteenth-century periodical collection offers a vibrant, multifaceted snapshot of the Victorian world, weaving together gripping fiction, sharp literary criticism, and sober reporting on global imperial conflicts and domestic social crises.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of "Carrots:" Just a Little Boy

"Carrots:" Just a Little Boy

Mrs. Molesworth

This is a gentle, intimate portrait of childhood, capturing the small-scale tragedies and profound, imaginative wonders that define a young boy’s world. It serves as a tender bridge between the experiences of a child and the memories of the adult who once was one.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Derelicts

Derelicts

William John Locke

This story follows two broken individuals as they drift through a society that has no room for their pasts, ultimately finding a fragile, hard-won sanctuary in one another. It is a quiet, deeply felt examination of redemption.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Ellen Duncan

Ellen Duncan

William Carleton

A young woman fights to save her husband from a wrongful execution, while a vengeful son finds mercy through an unexpected act of kindness. This dual narrative captures the turbulence of nineteenth-century rural Ireland.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of Hester: A Story of Contemporary Life, Volume 1 (of 3)

Hester: A Story of Contemporary Life, Volume 1 (of 3)

Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant

A young woman’s spirit, defined by a fierce, instinctive independence, struggles against the stifling expectations of a provincial town and the web of obligation woven by a wealthy, iron-willed matriarch.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of King Richard III

King Richard III

William Shakespeare

A chillingly brilliant usurper manipulates his way to the English throne, leaving a trail of blood and broken alliances before his inevitable, violent downfall.

British Literature6 min read
Cover of My Lords of Strogue, Vol. 1 (of 3): A Chronicle of Ireland, from the Convention to the Union

My Lords of Strogue, Vol. 1 (of 3): A Chronicle of Ireland, from the Convention to the Union

Lewis Wingfield

A storm of political fervor sweeps across Ireland in the late 18th century, pulling families apart as idealistic youth clash with a rigid, entrenched aristocracy. This chronicle captures a nation standing on a knife-edge, poised between the hope of autonomy and the crushing reality of the Act of Union.

British Literature6 min read