The title: a comedy in three acts is a sparkling domestic comedy unfolds in a well-appointed sitting room where siblings’ banter wittily over family quirks and wartime scarcities, soon entangled in debates over accepting a prestigious baronetcy. As a visiting friend arrives bearing articles under a sharp pseudonym questioning titles merit, parental health concerns and generational clashes ignite humorous tensions between tradition and modernity. Themes of social vanity versus genuine worth...

Judith, a play in three acts; founded on the apocryphal book of Judith unfolds as a gripping dramatic retelling of a bold woman’s daring stand against overwhelming invasion, blending biblical valour with themes of divine faith, feminine resolve, and sacrificial cunning amid desperate siege. The action ignites in the parched city of Bethulia, gripped by enemy encirclement that starves its people of water and hope, where beleaguered leaders face crumbling morale and faltering command. A recl...

A hotel murder mystery classic.Luxury, laughter, and lethal secrets fill the corridors when an American millionaire buys London's grandest hotel. He bought a hotel for dinner… and uncovered a conspiracy the staff would kill to keep quiet.Decades before the cozy mystery had a name, Arnold Bennett set murder, monarchy, and razor-sharp wit loose inside London's grandest hotel in this 1902 classic.Arnold Bennett's classic murder mystery in a new edition...

A quiet house. A lingering presence. A mystery that refuses to fade. The Ghost is a compelling supernatural-themed novel by Arnold Bennett, blending psychological depth with atmospheric storytelling. The story unfolds around a haunting presence that disrupts ordinary life, gradually revealing hidden emotions, unresolved past events, and the fragile boundaries between reality and imagination. Rather than focusing solely on fear, the narrative explores how memory, guilt, and human perception...

The Old Wives' Tale by Arnold Bennett is a sweeping and richly detailed novel that chronicles the lives of two sisters over the course of decades, offering a profound exploration of family, society, and personal transformation. Widely regarded as one of Bennett's greatest achievements, the novel presents an intimate portrait of ordinary lives shaped by changing times and unexpected circumstances. The story follows the contrasting journeys of two sisters whose paths diverge dramatically as ...

Literary Taste: How to Form It by Arnold Bennett is a thoughtful and practical guide to reading, appreciation, and the development of a lifelong relationship with literature. Written by one of the most respected English novelists and critics of the early twentieth century, this work offers readers an accessible approach to cultivating a deeper understanding of great books and the pleasures of thoughtful reading. Rather than presenting literature as an exclusive pursuit reserved for scholar...

A haunting collection of classic supernatural stories filled with dark mysteries, ghostly encounters, and eerie suspense. This unforgettable anthology brings together thirty remarkable tales from legendary authors of horror, gothic fiction, and supernatural literature. From haunted houses and cursed secrets to strange phenomena and terrifying apparitions, each story explores the unknown with imagination and suspense. Rich in atmosphere and psychological tension, the collection captures the...

*Riceyman Steps*, first published in 1923, is set in "dingy and sordid" Clerkenwell, in central London, where "existence was a dangerous and difficult adventure in almost frantic quest of food, drink and shelter." It's there that Henry Earlforward runs a gloomy, dusty store full of secondhand books. He eats less and less with every day, keeps his young servant Elsie working long hours for minimal pay, and never lights a candle when darkness will do. One day he takes notice of Violet, a mid...

*The Old Wives' Tale*, considered to be one of Bennett's finest works, begins in the 1860s, in the industrial "Five Towns" of the English Midlands, where he set many of his partially autobiographical stories.The novel follows the prosperous Baines family, who live above the successful clothing shop they own in the town of Bursley (based on Burslem, in Staffordshire). Even when the two Baines daughters were still young, their characters are already formed. Sophia has "youth, beauty, and ran...

When Theodore Racksole-one of the richest men in America, and consequently the world-sits down in London's Grand Babylon Hotel and orders a beefsteak and a bottle of beer, he isn't aware that he's about to become part of a plot involving blackmail, espionage, murder, the royal families of Europe and his daughter Nella. As he's sucked in to the inner workings of the hotel and its staff he has to make a series of stark choices for the safety of his family and guests.*The Grand Babylon Hotel*...

We rely on your support to help us keep producing beautiful, free, and unrestricted editions of literature for the digital age. Will you support our efforts with a donation ? Anna of the Five Towns , first published in 1902, is one of Arnold Bennett's earliest published works. It's his first novel to take place in the Five Towns, a fictional district in Middle England based on the real Stoke-on-Trent, and the setting for many of his later books. The story takes place in an industrial distr...

A compelling story that blends mystery, psychological tension, and the unseen workings of fate. In The Ghost, Arnold Bennett presents a thought-provoking narrative centered around ambition, secrecy, and the mysterious influences that shape human decisions. As characters navigate a world filled with uncertainty and hidden motives, events begin to unfold in ways that suggest something beyond ordinary explanation may be at play. The story draws readers into a tense atmosphere where perception...