The Haunting of Toby Jugg (1948) by Dennis Wheatley

Book review by George S: The premise of this story is a gripping one: During the Second World War, Toby Jugg, a fighter-pilot, crashes and is paralysed from the waist down. He is being looked after in a country house in Wales, under the care of Helmut, a teacher from his old school. The book … Continue reading →

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells (1896)

H. G. Wells need no introduction, so perhaps shouldn’t be in our collection of fiction from 1900-1950 that needs to be preserved, but his popularity is evidenced in how often he is donated! We have early editions and several Penguin reprints from 1946. The fly leaf of the Penguin states: “This edition of The Island of … Continue reading →

The Man with Red Hair by Hugh Walpole (1925)

A late entry into our series of Hugh Walpole reviews. See also reviews of The Killer and the Slain, Farthing Hall, Judith Paris and The Cathedral. Review by Helen C: Our hero, Harkness, a pleasant young American, feeling aimless and useless in London, travels to a beautiful Cornish seaside town to see their annual August processional … Continue reading →

The Killer and the Slain by Hugh Walpole (1942)

Review by Thecla: This is a dark, uncanny novel, one of Walpole’s macabre works. It is subtitled “A Strange Story” and the dedication to Henry James reads “This macabre is dedicated in loving memory and humble admiration to the great author of The Turn of the Screw.” This is Walpole’s version of the doppelgänger story. … Continue reading →

The Scarlet Plague by Jack London (1912)

Review by George Simmers (see his Great War Fiction blog here) First published in London Magazine in 1912, then in book form by Macmillan in 1915. In The Scarlet Plague the human race has been all but wiped out by a devastating epidemic, an apocalyptic theme that has become popular in later science fiction. Jack … Continue reading →