Showing results by narrator "Rob Goll" in All Categories

Francis Raven awakens on the eve of his birthday, frightened by the appearance of a woman attempting to murder him. He is continually haunted by this woman and years later marries Alicia Warlock, who looks strikingly identical to the figure from his dream. Is this Dream Woman simply an apparition or will her attempts to kill Francis become reality? Also known as The Ostler in earlier versions, The Dream Woman is another of Collins' finest detective stories.

Having barely escaped from the Plains of Fire with her life, Auri follows the pleas of her father and sets out for the safety and knowledge of the Dragon Masters. Once there, she hopes to immerse herself in their training and become the decisive edge that Terradin needs to stop Obsidian and his Rebels. But before her journey has even truly begun, someone dear to her is ripped away from her. Reeling from the loss, and with Terradin growing ever darker around her, she is forced to make a terrible decision that will have lasting repercussions.

After breaking off his engagement with Agnes Lockwood, Lord Montbarry marries the eccentric Countess Narona before embarking on a whirlwind honeymoon tour of Europe culminating in Venice. There they reside in the decaying Palace Hotel with the Countess' brother, Baron Rivar, and their courier, Ferrari. Lord Montbarry later dies of bronchitis and upon hearing of this from Henry Westwick, Montbarry's brother, Agnes agrees to meet with Henry at the newly renovated Palace Hotel to investigate the insurance claim that was purchased prior to his death.

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.

Mr. Redlaw is a chemistry professor tormented by painful memories of the sorrow, wrong, and trouble he has suffered in his life. On Christmas Eve, he is visited by a phantom, the double of himself, who offers him the gift of forgetting these painful memories. The catch is that others who come into contact with the professor will also lose the remembrance of their past hurts and sorrows. Redlaw is hesitant at first but, believing his life will be better and happier, he accepts the ghost's bargain.

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.

The art of dragon killing: Dragons have been eating humans for centuries. Now heroes throughout history stalk their legendary foe. Learn how to hunt, kill, and eat the wild dragon. Never before has revenge tasted so good. A literary feast for the bloody-minded. In Janet Morris' anthology on the art of dragon killing, 17 writers bring you so close to dragons, you can smell their fetid breath.

In a land of forbidden magic, a mysterious cave holds both riches and danger for three adventurers who discover a mighty treasure and a terrible secret.

The Return of Sherlock Holmes picks up where the previous collection of Holmes stories left off: with the great detective's return from the dead in "The Empty House." This and the twelve other stories in the anthology—including "The Dancing Men," "The Solitary Cyclist," "The Six Napoleons," and "The Second Stain"—are absolute classics of detective fiction centered on the genius Holmes and his loyal friend and companion Dr. Watson

Three veteran hunters are on the trail of a supernatural creature. It is a simple tracking mission, promising easy money. But things go horribly wrong, and the mercenaries realize too late that they are facing one of the deadliest creatures known to man. Embroiled in a desperate fight for survival, their doom may well await them.

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?

Written by 18-year-old Mary Shelley, the novel follows scientist Victor Frankenstein as he recounts his story to Captain Walton, who found a gravely ill Victor adrift at sea. Victor tells of his creation of a being so horrible that he abandoned the Creature, much to his own shame. Not to be forgotten, the Creature's quest for revenge and understanding from its master leaves a trail of devastation in its wake.

End-game. The point in chess where the last piece falls. Except, for Auri and those she loves, she is determined that it will be Obsidian and his armies who fall. To this end, she has brought all of the power she wields to bear. All of the combined power of dragons, men, dwarves, animals, and elves, all join together in a clash that will determine the destiny of Terradin...and the destiny of the souls who dwell there. Then the tide of battle suddenly turns, and she is on the run from not only Obsidian and his armies, but also those she loves most dearly.

As the winding up days of the great and final battle commence, old alliances come to the fore, new alliances are strengthened, and their world of shifting light and dark becomes more hopeful as the numbers of the Luminari and those that follow the Dragon-King Cerralys continues to grow stronger. And then suddenly the unthinkable happens, and Auri discovers a secret so brutal that it shatters everything she knows. Everything she is.

Mr Rayburn, a widower, and his young daughter, Lucy, first meet Mrs Zant in Kensington Gardens. She is oblivious to their presence and appears to be in some sort of trance. When they next meet she astounds Rayburn with her explanation: she is convinced that a vision of her recently deceased husband had come to her with a warning...

On New Year's Eve, an elderly ticket porter, Toby "Trotty" Veck, a hardworking but poor man, is disillusioned with the state of the world. He is appalled by newspaper reports of crime and immorality, and fears for the future prospects of his daughter, Meg, who is to be married on New Year's Day. Trotty has always fancied that the bell chimes of the nearby church offer him encouragement when he is most in need. On this particular night, he is drawn to the church tower, where he is greeted by the spirits of the bells and their goblin attendants who show him a vision of the future.

The Happy Prince and Other Tales is a collection of five stories first published in 1888. Oscar Wilde said of these stories that "they are studies in prose, put for Romance's sake into a fanciful form: meant partly for children, and partly for those who have kept the childlike faculties of wonder and joy, and who find in simplicity a subtle strangeness." The five stories in this collection are "The Happy Prince", "The Nightingale and the Rose", "The Selfish Giant", "The Devoted Friend", and "The Remarkable Rocket".

As the invading army of a mad king ravages the land, Vyder seeks help from the one force that can stop them: The fierce Highland warriors of his home province. But Vyder finds he has enemies in the Highlands now - can he stay alive long enough to raise an army, and even if he succeeds will it be too late?

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”