Muriel Spark

A present contains a monstrous secret.An uninvited guest haunts a Christmas party.A shadow slips across the floor by firelight.A festive entertainment ends in darkness and screams.Who knows what haunts the night at the dark point of the year? This collection of seasonal chillers looks beneath Christmas cheer to a world of ghosts and horrors, mixing terrifying modern fiction with classic stories by masters of the macabre. From Neil Gaiman and M. R. James to Muriel Spark and E. Nesbit, there are stories here to make the hardiest soul quail - so find a comfy chair, lock the door, ignore the cold breath on your neck and get ready to welcome in the real spirits of Christmas.

An essential read for fans of Muriel Spark - the definitive selection of her correspondence from her disastrous married life in South Africa, through to her experience in post-war London as a struggling writer, and her glittering success as a novelist.

Winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize when first published in 1965, The Mandelbaum Gate is among Muriel Spark's most accomplished novels.

The greatest ever selection of fictional detectives, all together in one superb CD collection. Find Sherlock Holmes with his long suffering colleague, Dr. Watson in The Dying Detective, Father Brown as a witness in court in The Man in the Passage, and J.G. Reeder in The Poetical Policeman and The Green Mamba. In Chimes, a very clever story by Dam Muriel Spark, her hitherto undiscovered detective will keep you guessing right up to the surprise ending. Popular favourite Inspector Morse features in The Burglar by Colin Dexter. Discover Nicholas Blake's intellectual young toff sleuth Nigel Strangeways in The Assassin's Club, and the very eccentric antique dealer and psychic Morris Klaw in Sax Rohmer's unusual and memorable story set in a museum.There's something for everybody in this brilliantly baffling collection to keep listeners of all ages in suspense.Narrator Edward Hardwicke was a British actor most famous for his role as Dr Watson opposite Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes in the popular 1980s television series.

One of the BBC Arts 100 Most Inspiring Novels Edinburgh, 1930, and the world is on the brink of change. Leading the charge is the glamorous, free-spirited Miss Jean Brodie, schoolteacher at the Marcia Blaine Academy, whose guiding principle is ‘Give me a girl at an impressionable age and she’ll be mine for life. I am dedicated to you in my prime.’ While Miss Brodie manipulates and charms ‘her girls’ – known as the Brodie Set – with notions of romance and heroism, tragedy and a cruel betrayal beckon. This is one of the 22 novels written by Muriel Spark in her lifetime.

"A perfect book."--Chicago TribuneMuriel Spark's classic novel, widely hailed as one of best of the twentieth century's--the story of a young, unorthodox teacher and her special (and ultimately dangerous) relationship with six of her students, now available as a special Harper Perennial Olive Edition.At the staid Marcia Blaine School for Girls, in Edinburgh, Scotland, teacher extraordinaire Miss Jean Brodie is unmistakably, and outspokenly, in her prime. She is passionate in the application of her unorthodox teaching methods, in her attraction to the married art master, Teddy Lloyd, in her affair with the bachelor music master, Gordon Lowther, and--most important--in her dedication to "her girls," the students she selects to be her cr me de la cr me. Fanatically devoted, each member of the Brodie set--Eunice, Jenny, Mary, Monica, Rose, and Sandy--is "famous for something," and Miss Brodie strives to bring out the best in each one. Determined to instill in them independence, passion, and ambition, Miss Brodie advises her girls, "Safety does not come first. Goodness, truth, and beauty come first. Follow me."And they do. But one of them will betray her.Harper Perennial Olive Editions are exclusive small-format editions of some of our bestselling and celebrated titles, and feature unique hand-drawn cover illustrations. All Olive Editions are available for a limited time only.

90 classic titles celebrating 90 years of Penguin Books Muriel Spark claimed The Driver's Seat to be her best and creepiest novel. Once you have met her heroine Lise - heading for the holiday of a lifetime in an extraordinarily garish dress and with violence on her mind - you will understand why.

I can't help it. Sometimes the words just come out and I can't stop them. It feels like preaching the gospel.When publishing assistant and war widow Nancy Hawkins tells Hector Bartlett he 'urinates frightful prose', the repercussions are swift. Losing not one, but two, much-sought-after literary jobs, Mrs Hawkins finds herself embroiled in a mystery involving anonymous letters, quack remedies and blackmail. Years later, and a far cry from Kensington, she looks back with a sharp and mischievous eye at the cost of telling the truth. Introduced by Ali Smith.'Mercurially funny, playful and mischievous' Ali Smith 'I was in heaven reading this book. . . just blissful' Stephen Fry'Funny, astringent, shrewd, her take on life is wonderfully bracing' William Boyd'Wonderfully entertaining' Sunday Telegraph'An outstanding novel . . . A Far Cry From Kensington has an effortless, translucent grasp of the spirit of the period' Observer'The divine Spark is shining at her brightest . . . Pure delight' Claire Tomalin

Todos querr amos vivir en una novela de Muriel Spark, donde nada es lo que parece. Donde parece que todo es divertido e ingenioso, pero puede resultar duro y siniestro. Esto es una novela. Una novela en la que su protagonista, Caroline Rose, escritora en potencia reci n convertida al catolicismo, oye voces. En concreto, la voz y las teclas de la m quina de la persona que est escribiendo esta novela. Ella sabe que es un personaje de novela y, por suerte, la novela es fascinante, divertid sima y profunda. Aunque a veces intentar cambiarla. Sus compa eros de historia son alucinantes. Por ejemplo, Laurence, su pareja, tiene una abuela encantadora y aparentemente inofensiva. Pero descubre que ella y una banda de esp as podr an estar traficando con diamantes escondidos dentro del pan. Muriel Spark, que tambi n se convirti al catolicismo y sufri una crisis nerviosa, escribi 22 novelas ultrapersonales y efervescentes. Una carrera que empez , precisamente, con esta historia. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION We would all like to live in a Muriel Spark novel, where nothing is what it seems to be; where everything seems fun and ingenious but also harsh and sinister. The main character of this novel, Caroline Rose, is a recently converted to Catholicism writer-in-the-making, who hears voices. Specifically, the voice of the person writing this novel. She knows that she is a character in it and, luckily, the novel is fascinating, hilarious, and profound (although she will sometimes try to change the plot). Her companions are great too. Laurence, her partner, has a charming and seemingly harmless grandmother. But Caroline discovers that she might be dealing in diamonds, hiding them in bread loaves. Muriel Spark, who also converted to Catholicism and suffered a nervous breakdown, wrote 22 effervescent, ultra-personal novels. Her career began with this story.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The Ballad of Peckham Rye is a wickedly farcical tale of an English factory town turned upside-down by a Scot who may or may not be in league with the Devil. Dougal Douglas is hired to do "human research" into the lives of the workers, Douglas stirs up mutiny and murder.