Henry Dunbar: A Novel [Paperback]

Mary Elizabeth Braddon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 9, 2007

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1864. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER IV. ; NOTES FROM A JOURNAL KEPT BY CLEMENT AUSTIN DURING HIS JOURNEY TO "WINCHESTER. "if I had been a happy man, with no great trouble weighing upon my mind, and giving its own dull colour to every event of my life, I think I might have been considerably entertained by the society of Mr. Carter the detective. The man had an enthusiastic love of his profession; and if there is any thing degrading in the office, that degradation had in no way affected him. It may be that Mr. Carter's knowledge of his own usefulness was sufficient to preserve his selfrespect. If, in the course of his duty, he had unpleasant things to do : if he had to affect friendly acquaintanceship with the man whom he was hunting to the gallows: if he was called upon to worm-out chance clues to guilty secrets in the careless confidence that grows out of a friendly glass: if at times he had to stoop to acts which, in other men, would be branded as shameful and treacherous,--he knew that he did his duty, and that society could not hold together unless some such men as himself--clear-headed, brave, resolute, and unscrupulous in the performance of unpleasant work--were willing to act as watchdogs for the protection of the general fold, and to the terror of savage and marauding beasts. " Mr. Carter told me a great deal of his experience, during our journey down to Winchester. I listened to him, and understood what he said to me; but I could not take any interest in his conversation. I could not remember any thing, or think of any thing, except the mystery which separates me from the woman I love. " The more I think of this, the stronger becomes my conviction that I have not been the dupe of a heartless or mercenary woman. Margaret has not acted as a free agent. She has paid the penalty of her...

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 490 pages
• Publisher: BiblioBazaar (May 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 055402957X
• ISBN-13: 978-0554029573
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,764,853 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A blockbuster in 1864, a classic today, August 11, 2010

By 

Patto (Vermont) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Henry Dunbar (Paperback)

Many of the lurid best sellers of the nineteenth century, once despised by highbrow critics, have the flavor of true literature when read today. This is certainly true of the best work of Mary Elizabeth Braddon.

Mrs. Braddon wrote over eighty novels, some anonymously for the working-class penny fiction market, and others under her own name for middle-class readers. This novel had an earlier incarnation as a far more sensational story with multiple crimes. When published in 1864 as Henry Dunbar, the plot was refined for more educated tastes, and the corpses were reduced to one.

Henry Dunbar, heir to the fabulously wealthy banking firm of Dunbar, Dunbar and Balderby, had connived at a forgery as a young man, and had consequently been banished to the Calcutta office. His thoughtless young confederate in the forgery, Joseph Wilmot, is less fortunate. He goes on to commit other forgeries and is transported.

When the two former friends meet again, there's murder - and the police never manage to solve the crime.

There's no real mystery to the reader, however, about what transpired. Rather, the great interest of the book is the devastating effect of the crime on the murderer, his family and the victim's family - and the infinitely clever manipulations of the guilty and the innocent.

The plot is complex, sophisticated, both romantic and thought provoking, and steeped in psychological realism. It includes a clever detective and a high-principled, amazingly courageous heroine.

Henry Dunbar was a great success with readers in its day and richly deserves its revival. The scholarly preface (which should be read last) explores the novel as a fictional commentary on Victorian attitudes to class, gender and crime.

I loved the book and strongly recommend reading it in this superior format, with its pleasant typeface and excellent introduction.

5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente herramienta de libro, July 1, 2011

By 

LETICIA - See all my reviews

This review is from: Henry Dunbar (Contexto Histórico) (Indice Activo) (Kindle Edition)

Este formato es realmente muy cómodo y fácil de usar porque se puede leer en su teléfono y se puede ver la biografía escrita por el mismo autor me gustó mucho este nuevo sistema para que mis libros a mi disposición

5.0 out of 5 stars excelente, June 29, 2011

By 

Tiburon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Henry Dunbar (Contexto Histórico) (Indice Activo) (Kindle Edition)

Lo maximooooooo, funciona de maravilla, es muy facil de usar lo recomiendo, facita mucho la lectura diaria, pude encontrar lo que buscaba al precio y para mi sorpresa este formato es muy comodo y facil de utilizar...muuuuuuy buena tienen un 100...