Two worn travellers, a young man and a fair girl about four years old, sat on the towing-path by the side of the Trent. The young man had his coat off, by which you might infer it was very hot; but no, it was a keen October day, and an east wind sweeping down the river. The coat was wrapped tightly round the little girl, so that only her fair face with blue eyes and golden hair peeped out; and the young father sat in his shirt sleeves, looking down on her with a loving but anxious look. Her mother, his wife, had died of consumption, and he was in mortal terror lest biting winds and scanty food should wither this sweet flower too, his one remaining joy. William Hope was a man full of talent; self-educated, and wonderfully quick at learning anything: he was a linguist, a mechanic, a mineralogist, a draughtsman, an inventor. Item, a bit of a farrier, and half a surgeon; could play the fiddle and the guitar; could draw and paint and drive a four-in-hand. Almost the only thing he could not do was to make money and keep it.

Although famed for his meticulously researched medieval masterpiece 'The Cloister and the Hearth', Charles Reade also penned some of the Victorian era’s most gripping sensation novels, creating controversial works that strove to end social evils and fight injustice. This comprehensive eBook presents the complete works of Charles Reade, with numerous illustrations, rare texts appearing in digital print for the first time, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Reade's life and works * Concise introductions to the novels and other texts * ALL 15 novels, with individual contents tables * Images of how the books were first printed, giving your eReader a taste of the original texts * Excellent formatting of the texts * Famous works such as THE CLOISTER AND THE HEARTH are fully illustrated with their original artwork * Rare story collections and plays appearing here for the first time in digital print * Special chronological and alphabetical contents tables for the short stories * Easily locate the short stories you want to read * Includes Reade's non-fiction seminal work on copyright: THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT – available no where else * Special criticism section, with five essays evaluating Reade’s contribution to literature * Features two biographies, including the seminal memoir compiled by Reade’s family - discover Reade's literary life * Scholarly ordering of texts into chronological order and literary genres Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles CONTENTS: The Novels PEG WOFFINGTON CHRISTIE JOHNSTONE IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND WHITE LIES ‘LOVE ME LITTLE LOVE ME LONG.’ THE CLOISTER AND THE HEARTH VERY HARD CASH GRIFFITH GAUNT FOUL PLAY PUT YOURSELF IN HIS PLACE A TERRIBLE TEMPTATION A SIMPLETON THE WANDERING HEIR A WOMAN HATER A PERILOUS SECRET The Tales THE COURSE OF TRUE LOVE NEVER DID RUN SMOOTH THE BOX TUNNEL CREAM A GOOD FIGHT SINGLE HEART AND DOUBLE FACE GOOD STORIES OF MAN AND OTHER ANIMALS THE JILT AND OTHER STORIES The Short Stories LIST OF SHORT STORIES IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER LIST OF SHORT STORIES IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER The Plays THE COURIER OF LYONS MASKS AND FACES TWO LOVES AND A LIFE IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND The Non-Fiction THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT TRADE MALICE A HERO AND A MARTYR The Criticism DICKENS, READE, AND COLLINS: SENSATION NOVELISTS by Walter C. Phillips CHARLES READE by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch CHARLES READE by William Dean Howells CHARLES READE by David Christie Murray LETTERS AND REMINISCENCES OF CHARLES READE by Kinahan Cornwallis The Biographies CHARLES READE: DRAMATIST, NOVELIST, JOURNALIST CHARLES READE AS I KNEW HIM by John Coleman Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles

This book recovers the fiction of Charles Reade, who was among the best-known authors of the sensation fiction of the 1860s, as a body of work that anticipates recent trends in literary and cultural theory.