Rudolf Rassendyll, Goes to Ruritania, a mythical land steeped in political intrigue. Rassendyll bears a striking resemblance to Rudolf Elphberg who is about to be crowned King of Ruritania. When the rival to the throne, Black Michael of Strelsau, attempts to seize power by imprisoning Elphberg in the Castle of Zenda, Rassendyll is obliged to impersonate the King to uphold the rightful sovereignty and ensure political stability.
Was this ill-fated expedition the end of a proud, old race-or the beginning of a new one? There are strange gaps in our records of the past. We find traces of man-like things-but, suddenly, man appears, far too much developed to be the "next step" in a well-linked chain of evolutionary evidence. Perhaps something like the events of this story furnishes the answer to the riddle
Robinson Crusoe, born in York, is the third son in his family. His parents wish to make a lawyer out of young Crusoe, but he has other plans. His one great desire is to become a sailor and go to sea. Although almost all of his initial forays into sea life are disastrous, Crusoe is not deterred. The novel is basically about his life and adventures on some island, where he lives for the next twenty-eight years...
The city of Haarlem in The Netherlands has set a prize of 100,000 florins to the person who can grow a black tulip. This begins a competition between the country's best gardeners to win the money, the honour and fame. The young and bourgeois Cornelius van Baerle has almost succeeded, when he suddenly is thrown into the Loevestein prison. There he meets the prison guard's beautiful daughter Rosa, who shall be his comfort and help, and at last his rescuer.
Nineteen-year-old David Crawfurd travels from Scotland to South Africa to work as a storekeeper. On the voyage he encounters again John Laputa, the celebrated Zulu minister, of whom he has strange memories. In his remote store David finds himself with the key to a massive uprising led by the minister, who has taken the title of the mythical priest-king, Prester John. David's courage and his understanding of this man take him to the heart of the uprising, a secret cave in the Rooirand.
In this nail-biting adventure story, Hannay must outwit a foe far more intelligent than himself; muster the courage to propose to the lovely, clever Mary Lamington; and survive a brutal war. Although Mr. Standfast is a sequel to The Thirty-Nine Steps, it offers far more characterisation and philosophy than the earlier book.
In 1881, Joam Garral, a ranch owner who lives near the Peruvian-Brazilian border on the Amazon River, is forced to travel down-stream when his past catches up with him