My Lady S Money

Wilkie Collins was one of the leading English authors of the Victorian era. Collins was a prolifi c author and he is credited for writing the first modern detective novel in English literature. My Lady’s Money, published in 1879, is a novel that centers around a rich woman who is a victim of theft. There are a lot of possible suspects she must sort through. One of them – an honest girl Isabella.

Wilkie Collins was an English novelist, playwright, and short story writer. My Lady’s Money, published in 1879, is a novel that centers around a rich woman who is a victim of theft. There are a lot of possible suspects she must sort through. One of them – an honest girl Isabella. The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Apprentices tells the story of sightseeing trip to Cumberland of Charles Dickens and his friend, the rising star of literature, Wilkie Collins. Writing together, they reported their adventures for Dickens’ periodical Household Words, producing a showcase of both long-cherished and entirely novel sides of these well-loved men of letters.

This early work by Wilkie Collins was originally published in 1877. Born in Marylebone, London in 1824, Collins' family enrolled him at the Maida Hill Academy in 1835, but then took him to France and Italy with them between 1836 and 1838. Returning to England, Collins attended Cole's boarding school, and completed his education in 1841, after which he was apprenticed to the tea merchants Antrobus & Co. in the Strand. In 1846, Collins became a law student at Lincoln's Inn, and was called to the bar in 1851, although he never practiced. It was in 1848, a year after the death of his father, that he published his first book, The Memoirs of the Life of William Collins, Esq., R.A., to good reviews. The 1860s saw Collins' creative high-point, and it was during this decade that he achieved fame and critical acclaim, with his four major novels, The Woman in White (1860), No Name (1862), Armadale (1866) and The Moonstone (1868). The Moonstone, meanwhile is seen by many as the first true detective novel - T. S. Eliot called it "the first, the longest, and the best of modern English detective novels...in a genre invented by Collins and not by Poe." Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions.

My Lady of Orange revolves around William the Silent, aka William of Orange, and his involvement in the Dutch Revolt. Set near the end of 16th century, when William of Orange was rebelling against Spanish rule of the Netherlands, the story is told from the perspective of an English mercenary leader, John Newstead, who decides to switch sides and joins the Dutch rebels.

Ok, nobody wants to lose pound500 – but is it big enough of a deal to deserve a short story? To put it into context: a Victorian pound500 was about pound60,000 in today’s money. So, yeah, it’s a big deal. That’s why, when Lady Lydiard has the money stolen from her, the plot becomes a whodunnit. A precursor to modern-day detective novels, this novella revolves around the colourful characters (and a Scottie dog) who are all present in Lady Lydiard’s household when her pound500 disappears. In this fun and compelling tale, two of the men suspected are both romantically interested in Isabel Miller, Lady Lydiard’s companion-cum-adoptive-daughter. "My Lady’s Money" follows these suspects as the intensity of both the theft and romance increases. A classic mystery novella with a love story: think Miss Marple but with marriage proposals. London-born Wilke Collins (1824-1889) became known in Victorian England for his novels and plays, sometimes writing together with Charles Dickens. His most famous works, "The Woman in White" (1859) and "The Moonstone" (1868), are examples of the first modern detective novels.