Historical Letters

The stables stood since Elizabethan times on the grounds of Castle Whitstable in Kent. There was a time when the trumpets of war sounded the stables’ grooms fitted the castle mounts for battle. That was before the Great War, and before machine guns, mustard gas, and aeroplanes. It was a glorious time, at least in the myths woven to disguise the blood and screams of men and horses dying in battle.

Three young men are caught by a storm and are offered shelter by a strange man. Something about him is very disturbing and they are about to find out what it is. Their host claims that he has made a pact with the Devil and can't get himself out of the deal. Is he going crazy or he is telling the truth? If it is the truth, can the three visitors help the poor man? Find out in Leroux’s "In Letters of Fire". B. J. Harrison started his Classic Tales Podcast back in 2007, wanting to breathe new life into classic stories.

If you look at any listing of the 10 most important books of detective stories published in the United States, chances are you will find Uncle Abner, Master of Mysteries on most of them. It is generally recognized as one of the most important contributions to American detective fiction between Poe and Hammett. In fact, there are some critics who call it the single finest collection of American detective stories ever written. This story is from that famous collection.

Hester Prynne, a social outcast, defies the narrow Boston Puritans' call for her head when she refuses to disclose the name of the father of her out-of-wedlock baby. Forced to wear the "A" for Adultery on her chest, Hester bears it as a badge of honor and snubs her nose at hypocrisy.

Flesh and Blood paints a stark portrait of a southern family torn apart during the Civil War and reunited by the bonds of blood and sacrifice as Jack and his sister Abigail in an salacious tale of forbidden love, loyalty and survival struggle to save their farm and keep a buried treasure out of the hands of the crumbling Confederacy.

In this final volume of diaries, Tony Benn reflects on the compensations and the disadvantages of old age. With the support of a small circle of friends and his extended family, he continues his activities on behalf of social justice, peace and accountability in public life, to a background of political change and the international economic crisis.