Showing results by publisher "Jimcin Recordings" in Genre Fiction

Anthony Trollope is known primarily for his epic novels like Barchester Towers. However, he also wrote a number of smaller "gems". This is one of the best. Alice Dugdale is a plain but intelligent girl who sees the love of her life pushed by society to marry the beautiful, but somewhat vacuous, rich girl in town. Alice's reaction to this situation makes a wonderful and insightful story.

The Talisman is Sir Walter Scott's tale of the Crusades, a tale of chivalry, of violence, of virtue, romance, and deceit.

Zane Grey is considered the first and, by many, the best author of "Western" novels. This second volume contains four of his most popular novels, The Valley of Wild Horses, The Last Trail, The Rustlers of Pecos County and The Lone Star Ranger.

Maurice Leblanc, a writer of detective fiction during the same period as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, created Arsene Lupin, a sort of French Robin Hood. An inventive genius, a master of disguise, and an accomplished actor, Lupin operates in the choice chateaux and salons. He scorns sham and with great disdain leaves his card in a baron's residence. The card reads, "Arsene Lupin, gentleman-burglar, will return when the furniture is genuine."

John Harmon returns from exile expecting to receive an inheritance, but knows that he must marry a stranger, Bella Wilfer, in order to collect. He fakes his own death and takes on a new identity in order to observe her first. Some of the memorable characters in this, the last completed Dickens novel, include Bella who, unlike other Dickens heroines, cannot be accused of unnatural virtue; the insolent barrister Eugene Wrayburn; the amiable Boffin; and the rascal Silas Wegg.

Zane Grey is considered the creator of the Western and remains the most popular author of that genre. The famous critic T. K. Whipple praised a typical Grey novel as a modern version of the ancient Beowulf saga, "a battle of passions with one another and with the will, a struggle of love and hate, or remorse and revenge, of blood, lust, honor, friendship, anger, grief—all of a grand scale and all incalculable and mysterious." This third Volume contains four of more of his captivating novels: Desert Gold, Wildfire, The Heritage of the Desert and The Last of the Plainsmen.

Dostoevsky studied human nature with passion and precision. He plumbed the depths and never winced at what he found, even when it was beyond his understanding. This extraordinary novel is a recital of his findings, told in the story of four brothers: Dimitri, pleasure-seeking, impatient, unruly; Ivan, brilliant and morose; Alyosha, gentle, loving, honest; and the illegitimate Smerdyakov, sly, silent, cruel. What give this story its dramatic grip is the part these brothers play in their father's murder.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) is commonly accounted as one of the first Great American Novels. It was also one of the first novels ever written in the vernacular, or common speech, being told in the first person by the eponymous Huckleberry "Huck" Finn, best friend of Tom Sawyer.

Raffles is Sherlock Holmes' polar opposite, a foil for great detectives and a man with all the immoral charms of a hero-thief, plus a remarkable ability at cricket. Raffles is the godson of Robin Hood, the model for Cary Grant in "To Catch a Thief," and the inspiration of Leslie Charteris' "The Saint." As the great reinvention of the trickster for the 20th century, Raffles convinces readers to throw away their scruples and follow along for wit, bold adventures, and thrilling suspense.

Kate Chopin was an American author of short stories and novels, mostly with a Louisiana Creole background. Today she is now considered a forerunner of the feminist authors of the 20th century. This powerful story concerns a wife who learns that her overbearing husband has been killed. The short period of mourning turns to the hope of her new freedom - but then comes the very unexpected climax.

Northanger Abbey certainly contains some elements of 18th century Gothic “potboilers” but with a satiric slant. It has the overbearing father who was “not in the least addicted to locking up his daughters”, although her mother does not die giving birth to her, and the “heroine”, Catherine Morland, prefers playing cricket with her brothers to any girlish pastimes like watering rose bushes or feeding canaries. The book is a hilarious parody and certainly the most lighthearted of Austen's novels.

"The Bet" is one of Chekov's most anthologized stories. A rich banker makes a bet with a poor artist that he cannot voluntarily stay imprisoned for a long period of time. The result of the bet is quite different than either man could have supposed.

Emile Zola, along with fellow novelists Honoré de Balzac and Gustave Flaubert, was an early realist in French literature. In novels such as Flaubert's Madame Bovary and Zola's Nana, sex and violence were examined with vivid clarity. These realists soon adopted the word naturalism to describe their writings.

The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket is Edgar Allan Poe's only complete novel, published in 1838. Set in 1827, it is an exciting blend of science, romance, adventure, realism, and supernaturalism. It is based on the actual experiences of J.N. Reynolds, whose book Poe consulted.

The Panhandle was a lonely purple range land, unfenced, and wind swept. Bill Smith, cattleman, threw up a cabin and looked at the future with hopeful eyes. One day while plowing almost out of sight of his little home - which that morning he had left apprehensively owing to an impending event - he espied his wife Margaret coming along the edge of the plowed field. She had brought his lunch this day, despite his order to the contrary.

Les Miserables is set in the Parisian underworld. The protagonist, Jean Valjean, is sentenced to prison for 19 years for stealing a loaf of bread. After his release, Valjean plans to rob monseigneur Myriel, a saint-like bishop, but cancels his plan. However, he forfeits his parole by committing a minor crime, and for this crime Valjean is haunted by the police inspector Javert. Valjean eventually reforms and becomes a successful businessman, benefactor, and mayor of a northern town.

Zane Grey is considered the creator of the Western genre and remains its most popular author. The famous critic T. K. Whipple praised a typical Grey novel as a modern version of the ancient Beowulf saga, "a battle of passions with one another and with the will, a struggle of love and hate, or remorse and revenge, of blood, lust, honor, friendship, anger, grief—all of a grand scale and all incalculable and mysterious." This fourth Volume contains four more of his novels: The Light of Western Stars, The UP Trail, The Spirit of the Border and The Call of the Canyon.

In this book, written entirely in letters, we meet a young Victorian couple who are, at least in the beginning, profoundly ignorant of anything to do with sex. Then they meet a “woman with experience”, and their sexual education begins. They are soon awakened to their amorous longings and describe exactly how that happens in a series of letters. This book is for adults only, since the descriptions describe a wide variety of sexual activities very explicitly. Like many books of Victorian erotica, this book is a fascinating look at the “other side” of the Victorian era. 

Alcatraz is classic Western from one of the masters of the genre. It's the story of a wild horse many said could not be caught or broken and the man who set out to prove them wrong. Added to the mix, there's danger, betrayal, heroes and villains, and romance.

Frederick Schiller Faust was a prolific writer who wrote under a number of pseudonyms. One of these was Max Brand. Gunman's Reckoning is the story of a drifter who is given the job of righting a great wrong. In the midst of carrying out his task, he finds out that he was not told the entire truth. He continues anyway, because in doing the job, he has stumbled on the answer to a long quest of his own. This book is a western romance that has a bit of everything: love, mystery, lies, action and humor.