[46J]≡ [PDF] Gratis The Law and the Lady Penguin Classics Wilkie Collins David Skilton 9780140436075 Books

The Law and the Lady Penguin Classics Wilkie Collins David Skilton 9780140436075 Books

Download As PDF : The Law and the Lady Penguin Classics Wilkie Collins David Skilton 9780140436075 Books

The Law and the Lady Penguin Classics Wilkie Collins David Skilton 9780140436075 Books

Wilkie Collins has become one of my favorite authors. The book arrived timely and in excellent condition. Many thanks. Just an aside note, I wish other publishers would take a hint from Resurrected Press and use a larger print in their books.


Tags : The Law and the Lady (Penguin Classics) [Wilkie Collins, David Skilton] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Despite the grave misgivings of both their families, Valeria Brinton and Eustace Woodville are married. But before long the new bride begins to suspect a dark secret in her husband's past and when she discovers that he has been living under a false name,Wilkie Collins, David Skilton,The Law and the Lady (Penguin Classics),Penguin Classics,0140436073,Thrillers - General,Detective and mystery stories,Detective and mystery stories.,19th century fiction,COLLINS, WILKIE, 1824-1889,Classic crime,Classic fiction,Classics,Crime & mystery,FICTION Classics,FICTION Mystery & Detective Women Sleuths,FICTION Thrillers General,Fiction,Fiction-Coming of Age,FictionMystery & Detective - Women Sleuths,GENERAL,Great BritainBritish Isles,Literature - Classics Criticism,LiteratureClassics,Literature: Classics,Literature: Texts,Mystery & Detective - Women Sleuths,Novels, other prose & writers: 19th century,ScholarlyUndergraduate,classic books;classic literature;classic;dickens;19th century;victorian;detective novels;detective;literature;crime;crime fiction;crime books;mystery books;mystery and thrillers;murder;historical fiction;mystery and suspense;historical novels;britain;historical;detective fiction;murder mystery books;murder mystery;british literature;english literature;english;thrillers;thriller;horror books;horror;horror novels;gothic;humor;suspense books;suspense;romance;romance books;marriage books;marriage,classic; 19th century; victorian; english; literature; english literature; classic books; classic literature; dickens; detective novels; detective; crime; crime fiction; crime books; mystery books; mystery and thrillers; murder; historical fiction; mystery and suspense; historical novels; britain; historical; detective fiction; murder mystery books; murder mystery; british literature; thrillers; thriller; horror books; horror; horror novels; gothic; humor; suspense books; suspense; romance; romance books; marriage books; marriage,Classics,FICTION Classics,FICTION Mystery & Detective Women Sleuths,FICTION Thrillers General,FictionMystery & Detective - Women Sleuths,Mystery & Detective - Women Sleuths,Literature - Classics Criticism,Collins, Wilkie, 1824-1889,Fiction,Literature: Classics,19th century fiction,Classic crime,Classic fiction,Crime & mystery,Literature: Texts,Novels, other prose & writers: 19th century

The Law and the Lady Penguin Classics Wilkie Collins David Skilton 9780140436075 Books Reviews

Wilie Collins is (in America) an unsung master. Also don't pass up my favorite NO NAME - a female Count of Monte Cristo.
This book is interestin because it concerns the hestation that surrounds two people who want to marry and must face certain objections from family members and society.
Good but not one of his best.
This is the second novel I read this year by Wilkie Collins. After first reading one of his most celebrated works, Woman In White, I ordered this one. Although, I didn't like it as much as Woman In White, I did feel it was a good solid, entertaining mystery. I've become a big fan of Collins and look forward to reading more of his novels.
When I was a kid, I was obsessed with Nancy Drew. Not because of the characters or the plots (which even at 9 years old I knew were hackneyed), but because of the stuff -- secret passageways, crumbling old maps, Spanish lace shawls, whispering statues, jewel-encrusted automaton birds, antique lockets with hidden inscriptions . . .

This book is the direct ancestor of that genre, although it was ostensibly written for grown-ups, not for kids. Collins seemed to have dreamed up the melodramatic plot and plucky female detective as an excuse to create fantastical settings filled with wondrous objects. It's a Gothic cabinet of curiosities, and utterly delectable.

Here's a little sample, taken from a passage in which our heroine is searching an old gentleman's library for clues

"On the upper shelf there appeared, in solitary grandeur, one object only -- a gorgeously-bound book. . . . The binding was of blue velvet, with clasps of silver worked in beautiful arabesque patterns, and with a lock of the same precious metal to protect the book from prying eyes. . . .

"Being a woman, . . . I opened the book, without a moment's hesitation. The leaves were of the finest vellum, with tastefully designed illuminations all round them. And what did these highly ornamented pages contain? To my unutterable amazement and disgust, they contained locks of hair, let neatly into the centre of each page -- with inscriptions beneath, which proved them to be love-tokens from various ladies, who had touched the Major's susceptible heart at different periods of his life . . . "

Ah, bliss. And truly, this is not even the best of it. There are pages and pages of descriptions of the most outlandish objects, whose presence is the books seems designed merely to delight and entertain.

A bit of a warning If you are looking for literary merit of the sort found in The Moonstone or The Woman in White, you won't find it here. But if you'd like to channel your inner Nancy -- and go back to the days when a mystery novel meant creaky old staircases, dusty old books and delicious hidden treasures -- this is the book for you.
I am a huge fan of Wilkie Collins. This is one of his good books, but not as good as The Moonstone or The Lady in White. Those two are fabulous! This one was easy for me to figure out what actually happened early in the book. But then he had me doubting myself by throwing in a twist. So I thought my initial feeling was wrong. Which kept me intrigued and guessing. In the end, my initial guess was correct, which is not usually the case with Wilkie. I usually am TOTALLY taken by surprise with Wilkie Collins and I LOVE the twists in his books!
The Moonstone is considered WC's best mystery novel. However, lately I've started reading Wilkie's lesser known works. The Dead Secret was extraordinary, and once again a Collins novel has captured my heart.

In The Law and the Lady, newlywed, Valeria Woodville discovers that her husband married her under an assumed name. Neither her husband or his friends or family will speak about the deception bestowed upon the unsuspecting bride. The only thing Valeria's mother-in-law discloses is that she pities Valeria and will speak no more on the subject.

Eustace Woodville, actually Eustace Macallen also will not reveal the reason for marrying Valeria under an assumed name. The topic is so painful to him that he abandons his bride rather than reveal the dark secret from his past. He leaves England and begs Valeria to forget him for her own good. Valeria does no such thing!

The Law and the Lady is a detective novel, an excellent one, in fact. Valeria takes it upon herself to discover the secret that forced her husband to lie to the woman he so deeply loves and then abandon her rather than reveal the secret from his past.

Slight spoiler coming up....Valeria's sleuthing reveal that Eustace Macallen was accused of murdering his first wife. A scottish court gave the verdict "not proven" He was not convicted of the crime, but the jury was unable to find him innocent. Eustace convinced himself that the scottish verdict would forever haunt his second wife, and she would always wonder if he actually did murder his wife.

Valeria's belief in her husband's innocence never wavers. She is determined to prove her husband's innocence, even when friends and family advise that not even the best lawyers money can buy could ever change the "not proven" verdict.

The Law and the Lady is the perfect novel for those who enjoyed The Moonstone or just enjoy detective novels. If you like this novel, make sure you read The Dead Secret, another excellent WC mystery novel!
Wilkie Collins has become one of my favorite authors. The book arrived timely and in excellent condition. Many thanks. Just an aside note, I wish other publishers would take a hint from Resurrected Press and use a larger print in their books.