Showing results by narrator "Rob Goll" in All Categories

Fresh off his victory at The Battle of Lodi, Napoleon is planning to enjoy his lunch when a lieutenant arrives with the bad news that the dispatches he had been carrying were stolen. Infuriated, Napoleon threatens him with being court-martialed unless he can recover them. A woman appears who claims to know about the theft. Unconvinced of her story, Napoleon and the woman enter into a battle of wits in true Shaw style. Will the conqueror of worlds end up conquered by a woman?

The action of this play, which occurs during a conflict on the Balkans, is initiated by the discovery by Raina, the daughter of an military officer, of a man who has taken refuge in her bedroom. Unfortunately, the man belongs to the opposing army. How will she deal with a notional enemy who behaves with such quixotic courtesy?

Hands Around, also known as La Ronde or Reigen, is possibly Schnitzler's most provocative and controversial work. In a series of 10 conversations occurring before or after a sexual encounter, between 10 pairs of characters from all walks of life, Hands Around offers a playful scrutiny of the sexual morals and class ideology of the era.

The story is told from the point of view of Pip, an orphan of humble origins who dreams of being a gentleman. From a chilling encounter with a convict when he was seven, through his coming of age and early adulthood, he tells of his "memorable days" and the "great changes" they wrought in him. Pip is apprenticed to kind-hearted Joe Gargery, the blacksmith, husband to his ill-tempered sister. On meeting the eccentric and reclusive Miss Havisham and her proud and haughty ward, the beautiful Estella, Pip becomes ashamed of his origins and hopes to one day better himself.

A Doll's House, published in 1879, was the earliest of Ibsen's "social dramas", and the first of his works to attract attention outside of Scandinavia. The central theme of the play is a woman's right to individual self-development, and represents, as humourist Stephen Leacock observed of many Ibsen plays, "a profound problem stated but not solved".

Wilfred Owen is widely regarded as one of the greatest poets of the First World War. He was tragically killed on patrol on 4 November 1918, a week before the armistice was signed. Owen was to see only five of his poems published during his lifetime. This collection of 23 poems, containing many of his best known works, uses the texts as published in Poems - edited by Wilfred Owen’s friend and mentor Siegfried Sassoon with the assistance of Edith Sitwell and first published in 1920.

This free verse literary fiction uses opposing stories to contrast models of justice. Justice, a Two Sons Diptych is short and different and will fit into your schedule for a quick read with a thoughtful social challenge. The social controversy it stirs is sure to be intense and enduring. The theological challenge is unsettling. Must justice always balance crime with punishment?

A Tale of Two Cities is one of Charles Dickens’ later novels, published and serialized in 1859. It is a compelling tale of love, sacrifice, and redemption set against the backdrop of the violence and horror of the French Revolution.

A House of Pomegranates is a collection of four fairy tales, published in 1891, as a follow on collection for The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1888). Written in the form of parables with strong evidence of a Christian tone, Oscar Wilde again revisits the themes of suffering and sacrifice, in a collection which he once claimed was ‘intended neither for the British child nor the British public.’ “Of what use is my soul to me? I cannot see it. I may not touch it. I do not know it”

Fight or Die. This battle cry saved the lost 9th Legion of Rome; the historic US 5th Company, 2nd Mounted Rifles; and a 21st century Special Forces anti-terrorist team on distant Arden when the merciless Horde attacked. Having met the enemy and prevailed, survivors long for peace. But a shadow falls over their universe, proclaiming once more that Death is only the beginning of the adventure.

Stars of Ea is a short science fiction story written by Stephen Landry, originally to be published as a part of a collection of short stories. Stars of Ea is a story about immortality, survival, space adventure, and mythology. Stars of Ea has the honor of being edited by Terry R. Hill, writer of the amazing In the Days of Humans series.

In the wake of a tragic accident, an idyllic marriage turns into something more sinister, and when the zombie apocalypse begins one couple must decide how long they're willing to let their vows bind them....

The story of the orphan, Oliver Twist. Brought up in a workhouse and then apprenticed to an undertaker, he runs away to London. Meeting the charismatic "Artful" Dodger, he then falls in with a gang of backstreet pickpockets run by the sinister Fagin. Oliver Twist is Charles Dickens' second novel, originally serialized in Bentley's Miscellany between 1837 and 1839.

Something was dead in each of us,
And what was dead was Hope. In this moving poetic study of his experiences in the Victorian penal system, Wilde relates the relentlessness and tedium of prison life, and of the haunted thoughts which trouble these "souls in agony" within their "numbered tombs". Oscar Wilde wrote "The Ballad of Reading Gaol" after his two-year imprisonment at the establishment. During his incarceration, a former trooper was convicted of the murder of his wife and hanged at the Gaol. This event is central to the poem's narrative.

Coel, the bard, thinks his life has taken a turn for the worst, but he hasn't met the Thiefmaster yet. An ill-conceived notion of earning more money to pay off his debt and escape a dark past leaves the minstrel in a situation he can't escape and with a deadly bargain. Will he survive his mistake? Who is this mysterious patron?

A Tales of Erana novella.

In a dark world where magic is illegal and elves live as slaves, a desperate elf and her human companion seek aid from the mysterious sorcerer, Archos and his lady, the sorceress Dii'Athella. Hoping to unearth the secrets of the Shining Citadel, lost for centuries in the mists of magic and time, they begin a dangerous and arduous journey. Could these secrets change the lives of an oppressed people or will such information bring about a worse fate?

Soldiers from varying eras and vastly different backgrounds, including the IX Legion of Rome, are snatched away from Earth at the moment of their passing and transported to the far side of the galaxy. Thinking they have been granted a reprieve, their relief turns to horror when they discover they face a stark ultimatum: Fight or die.

A short book of poems about war, politics, and the vagaries of life.

After 25 years of torment, Matthew is released from a mental institute under the watchful eye and care of Tammy Atkins, a care worker with a secret history of alcohol abuse and self-harm. As Matthew struggles to adapt to his new found liberty, he finds himself continuously plagued by the demons of his past. Haunted by strange and ghastly images and urges, Matthew sets himself upon a path of vengeance; determined to seek out his parents' killer and put his demons to rest once and for all.

A beautiful young elven sorceress flees for her life in a dark world where magic is forbidden and elves live as slaves. Watching her are the Order of Witch-Hunters, the corrupt organization that rules by fear and ignorance, and a mysterious, wealthy nobleman, lord of an idyllic valley who is not all he seems. As the slavers roll across the lands, stealing elves from what remains of their ancestral home, the Witch-Hunters turn a blind eye to the tragedy and a story of power, love, and a terrible revenge unfolds.