ARMADALE

THE DEAD ALIVE

In this 1874 novella by Wilkie Collins, the celebrated British writer of sensation fiction tells the tale of two brothers sentenced to be executed for having committed a murder that never occurred, and of the energetic Naomi Colebrook's efforts to ferret out the truth and save the two innocents.

THE DEAD SECRET

Warned by a servant to avoid a particular room in her ancestral home, Porthgenna Tower, a wealthy heiress searches the room only to discover a long-held secret that has the potential to strip her of her inheritance. But when Rosamund Treverton reveals the secret of her birth, she is surprised by the reactions of those closest to her.

THE HAUNTED HOTEL: A MYSTERY OF MODERN VENICE

An enigmatic countess with a wicked past, a terrible crime, a shadowy Venetian palazzo and a grisly apparition demanding vengeance - all the ingredients for a vintage Gothic horror tale. Also includes the short story 'The Dream Woman'.

THE LAZY TOUR OF TWO IDLE APPRENTICES

The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Apprentices was co-written by Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins and features two characters (Mr. Goodchild and Mr. Idle) that are stand-ins for these two. It is told over the course of what was originally five issues of Dickens' journal Household Words and depicts an "idle" (but actually quite frantic) vacation, with long walks/hikes and explorations of inns and other places.

MAN AND WIFE

Man and Wife centres on the confused and inequitable marriage laws of 19th-century Britain, reflecting the author’s own antipathy toward the institution. The plot follows the fortunes of a woman who, committed to marriage with one man, comes to believe that she may have inadvertently married his friend, according to the archaic laws of Scotland and Ireland. Collins shows himself to be a masterly storyteller, seamlessly moving the action from a country house to a suburb of London, and into a world of deceit and murder.

THE MOONSTONE

The beautiful moonstone is given to Rachel Verrinder as a birthday present, but the fabulous diamond brings with it a terrible curse.

NO NAME

Magdalen Vanstone and her sister Norah learn the true meaning of social stigma in Victorian England after the sudden death of their dearly loved parents, leaves them orphaned. The traumatic discovery that they were not married at the time of their birth leaves the daughters with no name, no rights and no property. With the help only of their loyal governess Miss Garth, the two girls set out to make their own way in the world.

THE WOMAN IN WHITE

Late one night, a drawing teacher has a midnight encounter on a lonely road with a mysterious and agitated woman dressed entirely in white, whom he helps to escape from pursuers. Who is she, and what is her connection to the teacher's new pupil, a beautiful heiress?