A-Z: X is for eXtra Penny Dreadfuls

The letter for today for the A-Z Challenge is the letter X.  Well, this one as you can imagine is a difficult letter to source.  In order to make the most of this challenge for my readers, I decided to source more penny dreadfuls and post where everyone could find them free.  I'm using the letter X for eXtra penny dreadfuls.  Please enjoy these exceptional serials

George W. M. Reynolds' The Mysteries of London

Overview: George W. M. Reynolds' The Mysteries of London is a sprawling tableau, seeking to depict life as Reynolds saw it in mid-Victorian London and expose what he viewed as gross injustice toward the poor. He wide range of tales included a clergyman as the main character and hump-backed dwarves, harridans and grave-robbers [who] groped past against a background of workhouses, jails, execution yards, thieves' kitchens and cemeteries.

Get your Free copy here via Gutenberg.

William Harrison Ainsworth's The Lancashire Witches

The serial which was later published as a novel is based on the true story of the Pendle witches, who were executed in 1612 for causing harm by witchcraft. It is considered one of the major English novels on witchcraft.

Get your Free copy here via Manybooks.net.

William Harrison Ainsworth's Jack Sheppard

Overview: A celebrated thief is the un-worthy hero of this early dramatic romance.

Get your #Free copy of Jack Sheppard via ManyBooks.net.

William Harrison Ainsworth's Auriol: The Elixir of Life 

Overview:  On the night of the 1st of March, 1800, and at a late hour, a man, wrapped in a large horseman's cloak, and of strange and sinister appearance, entered an old deserted house in the neighbourhood of Stepney-green. He was tall, carried himself very erect, and seemed in the full vigour of early manhood; but his features had a worn and ghastly look, as if bearing the stamp of long-indulged and frightful excesses, while his dark gleaming eyes gave him an expression almost diabolical.

Get your #Free copy via Amazon.

Mary Elizabeth Braddon 's Lady Audley's Secret

Lady Audley's Secret was first published as a serial in the mid 1800's.  Here is an overview of the story.  Lady Audley's Secret (1862) was one of the most widely read novels in the Victorian period. It exemplifies "sensation fiction" in featuring a beautiful criminal heroine, an amateur detective, blackmail, arson, violence, and plenty of suspenseful action. To its contemporary readers, it also offered the thrill of uncovering blackmail and criminal violence within the homes of the upper class. The novel makes trenchant critiques of Victorian gender roles and social stereotypes, and it creates significant sympathy for the heroine, despite her criminal acts, as she suffers from the injustices of the "marriage market" and rebels against them. 

Get your #Free copy via Amazon here.





Have you had a change to read any of these?  I haven't, but I can promise there are a few here I'll be adding to my TBR pile.

Have a fantastic day!

Mina Burrows

A-Z: G is for Penny Bloods Author, George W. M. Reynolds

The A-Z Challenge is back with the letter G.  I had an incredibly difficult time searching for a penny dreadful title that had the letter G.  It took some time, but I decided to feature author, George W. M. Reynolds.  And what a treasure trove of information I found on our penny blood author.  I'm glad I decided to feature him because he was like an icon in his day.

"Penny Bloods Author, George W. M. Reynolds"

George W. M. Reynolds and his works were so popular during his time it's a wonder why we don't hear more about him today.  It's been said that more people read Reynolds than Dickens during his time.  Can you imagine that?  Yes, well that one is true.  Some of his best known penny dreadfuls were The Mysteries of London, which according to Wikipedia sold over 40,000 copies of penny reads weekly.  His other wildly popular novel Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, was a gothic novel about a man who makes a deal with Satan in exchange for money and youth.  It sounds great but there's always a catch with Satan. He ends up turning him into a werewolf.  Now doesn't that sound like a great book?  Anyway, more to come on these penny dreadfuls and more throughout the A-Z challenge.

Here are a list of George W. M. Reynolds' collective works

• A Legend of Grandier.
• Agnes; or, beauty and pleasure.
• Alfred; or the adventures of a French gentleman.
• The Baronet.
• The Bronze Statue, or, the virgin's kiss.
• Canonbury House; or, the queen's prophecy. A historical tale.
• The Coral Island; or, the hereditary curse.
• The Days of Hogarth; or, the mysteries of old London.
• The Drunkard's Progress. A tale in two periods.
• The Duchess of Cavalcanti.
• Ellen Percy; or, the memoirs of an actress.
• The Empress Eugenie's Boudoir.
• The Engraver.
• The Family Conspiracy.
• The Fatal Glove.
• Faust: a romance of the secret tribunals.
• Joseph Wilmot; or, the memoirs of a man-servant.
• Kenneth: a romance of the Highlands.
• Leila, or, the star of Mingrelia.
• The Loves of the Harem; a tale of Constantinople.
• The Man with the Iron Mask.
• Margaret; or, the discarded queen.
• Mary Price; or, the memoirs of a servant-maid.
• Mary Stuart, queen of Scots
• The Massacre of Glencoe.
• Master Timothy's book-case; or the magic lanthorn of the world
• Master Timothy.
• May Middleton; or, the history of a fortune.
• The Mysteries of London.
• The Mysteries of London. Second series.
• The Mysteries of the Court of London.
• The Mysteries of the Court of London. First series.
• The Mysteries of the Court of London. Second series.
• The Mysteries of the Court of London. Third series.
• The Mysteries of the Inquisition.
• The Necromancer.
• Omar: a tale of the war.
• The Parricide; or, the youth's career of crime.
• Pickwick Abroad; or, the tour in France.
• Pope Joan; or, the female pontiff.
• Rosa Lambert: or, the memoirs of an unfortunate woman.
• The Rye House Plot; or, Ruth, the conspirator's daughter.
• The Seamstress; or, the white slave of England.
• The Soldier's Wife.
• Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf. A romance.
• The Young Duchess; or, memoirs of a lady of quality. A sequel to "Ellen Percy."
• The Three Friends.
• The Two Sisters.

This list of George W. M. Reynolds complete penny dreadfuls was provided by Penny One Penny. A Database of Cheap Literature, 1837-1860.  

Tomorrow I'll feature the Calendar of Hours and Friday I'll be featuring Ned Kelly, the Ironclad Australian Bushranger and the Spring-Heeled Jack.

Have a great Wednesday!

Mina Burrows