Mystery and Crime Collins, Wilkie: The Woman in White. v2, 16 Sep 2008

[HarryT]

"The Woman in White" is one of the first "mystery" novels ever written, and is a masterpiece of the genre of Victorian literature known as the "sensation novel".

Art teacher Walter Hartright encounters a mysterious woman, dressed in white, on a lonely moonlit road. She is in a state of confusion, and Walter assists her.

He goes to Cumberland to take up a position as art tutor at Limmeridge House to two young women: Marian Halcombe and her wealthy half-sister, Laura Fairlie. He finds to his amazement that the story of the woman in white may be entangled with the lives of the two sisters. Walter and Laura fall rapidly in love, but she is already engaged, by her father's wish, to a man named Sir Percival Glyde.

Walter and Marian together delve deeper into the mystery of the strange woman and engage in a battle of wits with Glyde's enigmatic Italian friend Count Fosco.

The story is told as a series of overlapping and interlocking narratives by the different characters involved, the reader never sure whose account can and cannot be trusted (Collins used the same technique in other novels, such as "The Moonstone").

A great read.

Enjoy!

EDIT: 16 Sep 08

Completely recreated the book with improved layout and formatting, preserved dashes, etc. Uploaded v2.

Previous download count: 251

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[HarryT]

Recreated the book with greatly improved layout and formatting. Uploaded v2.