„Tales of Mean Streets”, published in 1894, is a collection of short stories describing the appalling conditions that many working people endured. These stories are a brilliant evocation of a narrow, close-knit community, that of the streets of London’s East End. Having lived and worked there, he author knew that East Enders were not a race apart, but ordinary men and women, scraping by perhaps, but neither criminals nor paupers. Here Arthur Morrison chronicles their advent...
„Green Ginger” is one of the humorous story from mixed collection of sixteen short stories by the author of the Martin Hewitt, Investigator series. Collects several mysteries, including a „Cunning Murrell” tale, also „The Seller of Hate”, a deal-with-the-Devil story, and „The Chamber of Light”, a humorous ghost story of psychic investigator driving the poor spectres to distraction. The stories are well written and definitely a product of their time and place. Arthur George ...
Who else could have so quickly connected a partial sheet of music wrapped around a rock and tossed through a sitting room window with an infamous decades-old robbery? Would anyone else have taken seriously the fears of an eccentric old woman who swore thieves were after her most prized possession: a snuffbox fashioned from the actual wood of Noah’s Ark? England’s greatest crime-solver Martin Hewitt uses his superior intellect and genial charm to unmask thieves, murderers, a...
A collection of nine superb Sapper stories. Of course, in the stories are present Ronald Standish and Bulldog Drummond. Two indispensable hero. They again take up their lovely deal, begin to solve various crimes. They are crazy in their own business. Detectives are so obsessed with crime that they are ready to do anything.
One of the few full-length novels by Sapper, in which the Bulldog Drummond does not appear. He does, however, show the second most important character, Ronald Standish. The two most intelligent characters were villains, but their schemes and plots remained mysterious for most of the novel. We are also told that all victims die from the same poison from a small scratch on the body, although the exact poison is nobody known. This is an unusual novel, which is full of mysterie...
Readers will be the interlocutors of our heroes. They gather in the Dinner club and tell stories related to their professions. Members of the club are different people: actor, lawyer, doctor, soldier, writer and „ordinary person”. Every member of this club is obliged from time to time to treat their fellows with dinner. The stories of these people will surprise you in a pleasant way.
The motive in the case of murder – this is the first thing that draws the attention of the police. No one except a madman commits murder for no reason. Passion, hatred, money – as soon as the motive is established, it, as a rule, unmistakably points to someone. That is why Pender took the club with Sinclair’s arm and walked with him part of the way to his house on Brook Street. A very normal phenomenon on the part of one of Sinclair’s best friends. He was damn smart about t...
Sapper was the pseudonym of Herman Cyril McNeile, who wrote many novels, mostly on military subjects. In the story, the author fulfilled a fascinating look at the consequences of the war not only at the front, but also at the problems of the social class and opinions about the role of women in the family. The hero finds himself in a difficult situation: life after the war. He experiences many moments, but the most difficult thing is to cope psychologically.
Sapper stories focus on the individuals than overall strategy. They describe what the things are like for the soldiers in the trenches. The story of an excellent young man, noble and deeply versed in the intricacies of etiquette. Most of the human race was unaware of its existence; but the „ladies” and „gentlemen” in the Mogmoth Emporium of Mogg considered him the ultimate arbiter of elegance. There is no direct story about the war, but there is a story about the man who he...
Cassidy is a loyal and legendary soldier in the Corps of Royal Engineers. He is brave, proud, and even his elders are afraid of him. Cassidy meets the narrator, a high-ranking officer in Flander. They talk about life at the front. Indeed, a spiritual story, the reader himself will be able to feel all those spiritual moments of life.
The protagonist, the real adventurer Jim Maitland returns to England. There he meets a charming girl, Judy Draycott, who needs his help. She tells the story of her brother Arthur, who knew where the treasures were hidden, but he was killed. Judy decides to first get to the treasure and asks Jim to help her.
The Lieutenant and Others – a collection of stories written during the First World War. A novella written and published at the height of the war in 1916 by a soldier is approaching a real deal in its self-deprecating and ironic views on life in wartime. Here we can see a lot of dangerous moments that soldiers went through in the First World War. The book will not leave anyone indifferent.
The story of Staunton and Barstow, who are witnesses of a strange spectacle at a bar in an Austrian village. The aristocrat begins a formidable target training session on some playing cards – the Five of Hearts and the Five of Spades. Barstow remains to witness this several times. Further stories of love, revenge, jealousy and destiny complete this exciting volume.
The story of real men who sacrificed themselves for the sake of their homeland and family. McNeile pays attention to people, their psychological state. Great attention to how things are in the trenches of soldiers. About how terrifying they could be and how long stretches of boredom punctuated by moments of terror could break any man after a while.
Men, Women, and Guns – collection of short stories. Events occur at the time of the First World War. The story of the soldiers who boldly defended their homeland and about women who helped their men. Although the topic of the story is more adult, for teenagers it will also be interesting and instructive.
The story goes on the background of a heavy war. A person whose physical growth is impressive, but his mental state is not considered the best. This is a story about the wonderful awakening of the main character on one hot May day, when he serves in the trenches of the front line. The reader also learns about the exciting military experience of the protagonist.
Professor Goodman gets tragically in avaraet and dies. So many thought, except for Captain Hugh ‘Bulldog’ Drummond. He suspects that something is wrong. It turns out, his latest discovery – a miraculous new formula for manufacturing flawless diamonds at negligible cost. His suspicions are even more awakened when he notices a member of the Metropolitan Diamond Syndicate during the investigation. Subsequently, the detective unravels an ominous conspiracy and begins the race f...
World War I ended, but the fighting continues. Captain Hugh „Bulldog” Drummond forms the Black Gang, aimed at finding those responsible for conspiracies. They set a trap to lure the criminal leader of the gang. However, the criminals began to manipulate the main character. How does it all end?
In Bulldog Drummond, we meet with Captain Hugh Drummond, who lives boringly. Therefore, he places an ad in the newspaper, offering his services in any adventure, regardless of their legality or danger. Most answers are hopeless, but then one sentence is found – the real girl in need. This adventure will surely be interesting.
The story revolves around revenge. First, the main character, Bulldog Drummond, kills his stormy enemy, Carl Peterson. And his mistress wants revenge for Peterson. Suddenly, Drummond’s wife is kidnapped, but the criminal leaves traces. By which the main character is trying to find his wife. This chase takes place all over England, leading to an ominous house and a torture chamber.
The events of the story take place during the Second World War. Jim Brent, a soldier who serves Belgium, learns that his lover is marrying another. In desperation, he doesn’t care about his destiny anyway, and he rushes into battle with a hot head. He offers to blow up the bridge, which could cost him his life.
This is a well-written book with a fast-changing storyline. One of Drummond’s colleagues dies in a mysterious way. The main character wants to find out the cause of death. There were no traces of wounds on the body of the victim, no traces of weapons. Drummond was amazed that one of the millionaires was traveling in a boat with the victim.
In this story, Hugh is joined by Ronald Standish, who previously appeared in many of the author’s stories. Ronald Standish is a charming guy and a free detective. He receives a call from a friend who asks for his help, but the line abruptly interrupts. With horror, he rushes to his friend, but upon arrival finds him dead with wounds in his eyes. Can dektivev solve this riddle?
A stranger comes to the house of detective Hugh „Bulldog” Drummond asking for help. Hugh is always ready to get down to business. However, two overseers abruptly appear, asking about a man named Morris, the famous assassin who escaped from Dartmoor. The detective says that they are looking for the wrong man and helps the criminal to hide. So who is this stranger?
Drummond was a hard muscular and most powerful man. He was a magnificent boxer, a lightning and a deadly shot with a revolver, and utterly lovable. There is a person in the world who has a colossal brain, unshakable nerve and unlimited ambitions. However, there is a kink in his brain, which has turned him into a completely unfair criminal. For him, killing means nothing more than some kind of fun. Drummond must defeat such a criminal.
Bulldog Drummond At Bay is another story from the famous series of Herman Cyril McNeile. This story is full of mysteries for the reader. Drummond hears cries near his yard, then notices traces of blood there. He meets two guys who claim to be after a madman. The main character is determined to explore in his unique style, but discovers a mysterious message.
One of the men is Captain Hugh „Bulldog” Drummond – an officer with a strong desire for adventures. His friend, Peter, who tells this exciting story about a man who fears his life and desperately needs the help of a friend to penetrate the sinister Temple Tower. The author, as always makes an interesting story. The plot is full of dynamics actions.
Hamilton Cleek is a renaissance man for the ages: an intellectual giant with the brawn of ten men, he serves as a consulting detective, often helping Scotland Yard with particularly challenging cases. With the power to distort and transform his visage and mimic any mannerism he desires, Cleek, with the assistance of his cockney assistant „Dollops”, makes a super natural detective! In „The Riddle of the Spinning Wheel”, a young woman concerned that the turmoil in her family ...
Hamilton Cleek, once known to Scotland Yard as „The Vanishing Cracksman” is a reformed crook turned detective. He has a gift for both deduction and impersonation, a curious combination of Sherlock Holmes and Peter Sellars, which he uses to solve mysteries. After a long Channel crossing, Cleek drives a lady home only to discover her aunt has been murdered. But the mystery has only just begun. It leads to a mysterious and sinister chain of events, which Cleek and Superintende...
Sherlock Holmes fans will find a lot to like in Thomas W. Hanshew’s „The Riddle of the Night”. Thomas W. Hanshew (1857-1914), who also wrote as Charlotte Mary Kingsley, was an American author and actor best known for his stories of Hamilton Cleek, the man of the forty faces, who through his talents for disguise solves crime and mystery in London. He wrote some books in collaboration with his wife, Mary E Hanshew. In it, renowned consulting detective Hamilton Cleek is faced ...
This is another classic of golden-age detective fiction featuring Detective Hamilton Cleek who was introduced in „Cleek: The Man of the Forty Faces” first published in 1913. This super sleuth and master of disguise will bedazzle you once more as he ingeniously solves a new case. Without the logical mind and condescending manners of Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, Hamilton Cleek worms into your heart through your eyes and via your brain. In this tale, Cleek investigates the siniste...
Collection of several short mysteries, starring consulting detective Hamilton Cleek and his incredible skills at disguise with the assistance of his cockney assistant „Dollops”. Cleek is poacher-turned-gamekeeper, a master criminal who decides to turn straight and work for Scotland Yard after being stricken by the sight of a lovely, innocent young woman whose jewels he was about to pinch. Told as a fairly continuous narrative, held together by the underlying thread of Cleek...
Hamilton Cleek is back – or is he? Margot, Queen of the Apaches, the notorious French criminal gang, has been released on bail and vanished, Inspector Narkom of Scotland Yard has a series of inexplicable murders to solve, there is talk of revolution in Mauravania. And Cleek is missing. The stories collected here are some of the best about the clever and resourceful private detective Cleek, the man of the forty faces, who through his talents for disguise solves crime and mys...
In „The Riddle of the Mysterious Light”, consulting detective Hamilton Cleek is en route to meet with Scotland Yard detective Narkom when he’s intercepted by a roving gang of nefarious ne’er-do-wells. Can he muster his mighty intellect and physical prowess and hatch a plan to escape his captors? Hamilton Cleek is the central figure in dozens of short stories that began to appear in 1910 and were subsequently collected in a series of books. Cleek is a detective as remarkable...
A classic mystery novel featuring Hanshew’s best-known creation, the consulting detective Hamilton Cleek, known as „the man of the forty faces” for his incredible skill at disguise. An ex-cracksman turned Scotland Yard detective, Cleek’s slim and faultlessly dressed form is topped by an india-rubber-like face, of which he has remarkable control. Cleek is based in Clarges Street, London, where he is constantly consulted by Inspector Narkom of Scotland Yard. Cleek is the cent...
Thrilling detective novel taking place in the Engadine Express from Calais to Lucerne. It is a well-planned, logical detective story of the better sort, free from cheap sensationalism and improbability, developing surely and steadily by means of exciting situations to an unforeseen and satisfactory ending. A mysterious woman, followed by two detectives, shows up at the last minute to book a compartment for her servant, an infant and herself. The lady is afraid that someone ...
Set in an era when train travel was a privilege of the wealthy few, Arthur Griffiths’ „The Rome Express” features the exciting story of a murder on a luxury train and the ensuing investigation with most of the characters coming from higher classes. The passengers in the sleeping car of the Rome Express were just woken and informed that they will reach Paris soon, and a general bustle fills the train. Only one passenger cannot be awoken by the porter, no matter how loudly he...
The Fort Edward Hotel, better known as the Maroney’s Hotel, looked in the middle of the streets like a packing box among soap dishes. Other habitats stretched out on both sides of the wrong double row. At eleven in the morning there were few humans in sight, because the black? ies were in murderous fettle, and anyway, the principal industry of the place was waiting for the railway. Strange things happen on these streets. The reader will not immediately be able to understand...
The historicity of this story captivated everyone. After all, it gives a feeling of a sense of thinking and adventure of that time. A young free fur trader challenges the practices of the North West Company trader who is cheating the Natives of proper prices and enslaving them with debt for goods. Here, not only sinister characters, rebellion and accusations, but also love stories unfold against the backdrop of all this.
Lance McCrea lived in a boarding house. There he met a girl he fell in love with. But their relationship is hampered by a powerful person. Lance tries to find out why this powerful man has some kind of hold over her. When he faces the man down, he finds he has been murdered. Of course, he is not the murderer but is a prime suspect anyway.
Mappin is a wealthy New York criminologist and author who is highly valued by the police and high society. He participates only in those crimes that really interest him. And in ’Who Killed the Husband’ he investigates solely because all the people around him beg him to take action. In this story, a detective investigates the murder of a banker. The killer who, according to the police have already found.
Many guys wanted the playwright, Gavin Dordress, to die. Especially on the night of his party. Gail Garrett and Bea Townley openly quarreled for the main role in the play. The next morning Gavin Dordress was found shot to death, a chessman imprinted on his forehead, and nearby a letter of farewell that sounded suspiciously like one of his stage characters speaking. Then a new and amazing hint hastened the seemingly hopeless hunt.
„The Green Pack” is a novel adapted from a successful play by the playwright Robert Curtis. Robert Curtis was the private secretary to British crime writer Edgar Wallace. Curtis and Wallace met for the first time in 1913, before parting following the outbreak of World War One, as Curtis had to do his military service. In 1916, he was discharged from the service after contracting malaria. In 1918 he was reunited with Wallace who employed him as his secretary, he had the task...
1936. „Sanctuary Island” is a crime novel by the pioneer of detective fiction Edgar Wallace (an adaption by Robert Curtis). Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace was born in London, England in 1875. He received his early education at St. Peter’s School and the Board School, but after a frenetic teens involving a rash engagement and frequently changing employment circumstances, Wallace went into the military. He served in the Royal West Kent Regiment in England and then as part of t...
The novel of Edgar Wallace’s famous play told by Robert Curtis. „Smoky Cell”:... At ten o’clock that night the guards outside the prison walls were doubled and among them they had enough machine-guns to play havoc with a battalion. The warden of the prison had announced that he was taking no chances. Ben Guinney, he had said, might have escaped from Canyon City prison without his due dose of high-power juice, but he wasn’t going to jump this dump. Rumors of an attempt at re...
Here is Edgar Wallace’s famous stage-play as told by Robert Curtis in story form with all the dramatic excitement and suspense that thrilled theatre-goers. Robert Curtis was the private secretary to British crime writer Edgar Wallace. Curtis and Wallace met for the first time in 1913, before parting following the outbreak of World War One, as Curtis had to do his military service. In 1918 he was reunited with Wallace who employed him as his secretary, he had the task of cop...
Over her head hung the menace of murder – and; of the man who changed his name...Best remembered for penning the screenplay for the classic film „King Kong”, author Edgar Wallace was an astoundingly popular luminary in the action-adventure genre in the early twentieth century. „The Man Who Changed His Name” is a Robert Curtis’s adaptation of a screenplay by Edgar Wallace. This story packed with intrigue, mystery, murders, and it highlights Wallace’s unmatched skill in setti...
The novel of Edgar Wallace’s famous play told by Robert Curtis in story form with all the dramatic excitement and suspense. In the shady setting of a solicitor’s office on the East End waterfront a plan is evolved – all quite legal to get hold of a large American legacy bequeathed to an English girl. Murder is planned and tried: kidnapping, incarceration in a London barge, a dash for freedom, the intervention of the river police and knock-out drops all play their part in th...
Carter is probably the most famous private detective after Sherlock Holmes. It has been a character of pulp fiction since 1886 and has appeared in a variety of formats over more than a century. Considered the King of Detectives, he was based out of an apartment on Madison Avenue in New York City and later out of Manchester. The Nick Carter name was treated as a pseudonym, and many of the volumes were written in first person. Nick Carter would go on to become one of the most...
„Nick Carter – The Great Spy System or, Nick Carter’s Promise to the President” is a detective story featuring the famous detective Nick Carter first published in 1907, written by John R. Coryell. John Russell Coryell was a prolific dime novel author. He wrote under the Nicolas Carter and Bertha M. Clay house pseudonyms, and, like many of his fellow dime novelists under many other pseudonyms. This is the story of how Nick Carter, Master Detective, broke a foreign spy ring i...
„Whispering Death” (1931) is the third adventure in the „Dr. Night” trilogy by Aidan De Brune, (1874-1946). This third story is gaudy crime yarns, which steadily veers into fantasy by the end and features a very unlikely Asian villain who is as different from Fu Manchu as you can imagine: a small, colorless man of uncertain central Asian origin whose principal obsession is raising money by any means possible to recreate a long-dead central Asian kingdom of which his distant...
Jeśli zapytasz przeciętnego Amerykanina o najdłuższą amerykańską wojnę, zapewne wymieni Wietnam, a potem szybko się poprawi: Afganistan. Tymczasem powinien powiedzieć: wojna narkotykowa. Trwa już pięćdziesiąt lat i nie ma końca. Przez ponad cztery dekady Art Keller był na pierwszej linii frontu najdłużej trwającego konfliktu Ameryki – wojny narkotykowej. Jego obsesja pokonania ojca chrzestnego kartelu Sinaloi, Adana Barrery, kosztowała go życie bliskich i zabrała c...
At Sydney’s scandalous Artist’s Ball... a gunshot... a falling body... Call Inspector Knox of the CIB. „The Little Grey Woman” is rather short story and moves along very quickly but there’s plenty of tension and some genuinely creepy moments. Recommended for lovers of the offbeat. The Artists’ Ball was a real, and occasionally scandalous, costume ball held in Sydney for many years. Aidan de Brune walked round Australia in two years, and so he is able to give a thoroughly Au...
How many R S Allersons can there be in Sydney? More to the point, how many gang bosses named R S Allersons? The master mystery-story teller Aidan de Brune presents another breathtaking novel „"The Unlawful Adventure"”, written in 1932. It is a highly entertaining little thriller with absorbing interest and complicated plot. The characters are broadly drawn but vivid, the plot movers along at a breakneck pace, and it’s rather luridly sensationalistic for its era. The book is...
„The Pursuits of Peter Pell” is an episodic novel in 12 parts by Aidan de Brune, set in Perth, Australia. Peter Pell is a con man. That’s essentially it. He engages in a lot of humorous adventures and situations. It’s told in sequential short story format. As the novel is rather short and quite fast-paced with a lot of scenery-changes and adventures, this nice. Aidan de Brune was a big name in Australian literature but is forgotten today. He was a prolific author who wrote ...
Meet the famous Australian author Aidan de Brune and his latest mystery „The Murders at Madlands”. Eight persons are assembled in the dining room of the palatial home of Sir Rupert Haffervale, Sydney’s business magnate. Five of them are his associates, prominent men in the life of the city. The sixth is the star reporter of a big daily. The occasion is the formal handing over of control of a huge trust to Sir Rupert’s niece and heiress on her coming of age. At noon, as the ...
„The Green Pearl” (1930) is the second adventure in the „Dr. Night” trilogy by Aidan De Brune, (1874-1946). Aidan De Brune was a Canadian-born writer who settled in Australia. This second story is gaudy crime yarns, which steadily veers into fantasy by the end (gravity powered aircraft without engines...) and features a very unlikely Asian villain who is as different from Fu Manchu as you can imagine: a small, colorless man of uncertain central Asian origin whose principal ...
Another breathtaking novel by the master of mystery Aidan de Brune. What is the secret of the derelict mansion in the Australian countryside? „The Fortune-Telling House” is a fast-paced mystery, with good twists and turns where you can find the answer. Aidan de Brune provides a thrill of another sort! The author has acquired an admirable technique of the sort demanded by the novel of intrigue and mystery. De Brune is one of those thriller writers who were in their day wildl...
De Brune’s novel „The Flirting Fool” is a thrilling court-room melodrama previously only published as a newspaper serial. The story is fast-paced with some surprising twists, well written and great to read. Readers of Aidan de Brune’s novels may always count on a story of absorbing interest, turning on a complicated plot, worked out with dexterous craftsmanship. Nineteen novel length serials, two novella serials, and eighteen short stories, all except one published in Austr...
Aidan de Brune has been described as the Edgar Wallace of Australia. De Brune was a Canadian-born writer who settled in Australia. His latest novel, „The Shadow Crook,” certainly justifies the claim. It is an amazing story of a master criminal who terrorized Sydney, taunted the police, and baffled the finger-print experts. „The Shadow Crook” raided the detective offices in Sydney, bound and gagged the fingerprint expert, and ransacked his records. Who was he? Why did he tak...
There is always a special thrill of excitement about a mystery story, especially when the main characters cover their tracks successfully. „The Phantom Launch” is an Australian story through and through, its main setting being Sydney and Melbourne, and the swiftness and sureness with which both the launch people and amateur sleuths act will keep the reader breathless. Wireless plays an important part in this story. We defy any reader to guess the perpetrators of the crimes ...
„The Kahm Syndicate” is another breathtaking novel by the master of mystery Aidan de Brune, a colorful and prolific Australian writer whose opus is well worth saving from oblivion. Who will control the mean streets of Darlinghurst? This and another answers you can find here. The story is fast-paced with some surprising twists, well written and great to read. This genuine mystery story takes the reader from one exciting episode to another with all the adroitness and ingenuit...
„The Dagger and the Cord,” „The Green Pearl,” „The Unlawful Adventure” and other thrilling tales of mystery and intrigue have made Mr. de Brune popular with Australian fiction readers. Nineteen novel length serials, two novella serials, and eighteen short stories, all except one published in Australian and New Zealand newspapers between 1926 and 1935. „The Grays Manor Mystery” enhances his reputation. It is a story packed with mystery and intrigue and Aidan de Brune keeps t...
Aidan de Brune was a big name in Australian literature but is forgotten today. He was a prolific author who wrote in a variety of genres. Lots of novels by De Brune were reputedly published in the USA under various pseudonyms, but these have not been traced. A new story by this popular author entitled „The League of Five.” The plot is laid mostly in Sydney, and centers round a mysterious band which goes under the name from which the tale takes its name. A love interest thre...
Another breathtaking novel by the master of mystery Aidan de Brune (Herbert Charles CULL). A dead man and three dead snails. What could it mean if not murder? The story is fast-paced with some surprising twists, well written and great to read. This genuine mystery story takes the reader from one exciting adventure to another with all the adroitness and ingenuity of de Brune’s previous successful books. One is left gasping with suspense as the many clues are unraveled only t...
Not all buried treasure is found in a pirate’s chest... A chill-packed mystery from the master of suspense. This is what Aidan de Brune is all about, a complex, old fashioned mystery, with a highly unlikely solution. De Brune’s novel „Douchard’s Island” was published in 1931. Other novels by De Brune were reputedly published in the USA under various pseudonyms, but these have not been traced. Aidan De Brune was a Canadian-born writer who settled in Australia. In the 1920s a...
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To format zapewniający taki sam wygląd strony jak w wersji papierowej – w tym formacie podział na strony jest sztywny. PDF służy do długoterminowego archiwizowania elektronicznych danych i może być odczytywany na większości komputerów, laptopów, smartfonów, czytników czy tabletów.
Książki sensacyjne są z nami nie od dziś - już w średniowieczu, kiedy królowały romanse rycerskie, wciągające, pełne intryg fabuły były niezwykle popularne. Obecnie ebooki należące do tego gatunku są niezmiennie jednymi z najchętniej czytanych nie tylko w Polsce, ale także na całym świecie. Książki sensacyjne pełne są wartkiej, pełnej zwrotów akcji fabuły oraz częstych wątków kryminalnych. Dodatkowo napisane są przystępnym, często lekkim językiem, który sprawia, że jesteśmy w stanie spędzić długie godziny, podążając za kolejnymi odkryciami i niespodziewanymi wydarzeniami w życiu bohaterów. Choć niektórzy uważają książki sensacyjne za mało ambitną literaturę, której celem jest przede wszystkim dostarczenie emocji i silnych wrażeń, trudno się z tą opinią w pełni zgodzić. Często sięgają one także po political fiction, tworząc nieistniejące w realnym życiu scenariusze oparte na napięciach i rozgrywkach politycznych.
Powieści sensacyjne z najwyższej półki potrafią zaskoczyć czytelnika na każdym kroku, wciągają w tajemnicę oraz wielowątkowe fabuły osadzone w realistycznym świecie pozbawionym wątków fantastycznych. Do takich historii należy chociażby seria powieści autorstwa Camilli Läckberg i Henrika Fexeusa, która składa się z tomów “Mentalista” oraz “Kult”. W pierwszej części policja zostaje wezwana do mocno nietypowego znaleziska - skrzyni ze zwłokami młodej kobiety, która przebita jest mieczami. Brutalne morderstwo czy nieudana magiczna sztuczka? Prowadząca śledztwo inspektor Mina Dabiri prosi o pomoc Vincenta Waldera, mentalistę, który jest ekspertem od mowy ciała oraz świata iluzji. Wspólnie szybko udaje im się odnaleźć wcześniejszą, bardzo podobną sprawę, co prowadzi do wniosku, że mają do czynienia z seryjnym mordercą. Tym bardziej więc muszą się spieszyć, by powstrzymać go, nim pojawią się kolejne ofiary…
Innym przykładem wciągającej serii powieści sensacyjnych jest kultowy już cykl “ Jack Reacher ” Lee Childa - ponad dwadzieścia tomów historii związanych z życiem emerytowanego majora żandarmerii wojskowej Armii Stanów Zjednoczonych, który wychowywał się i uczył całe życie w bazach wojskowych. Służył w 110. Specjalnej Jednostce Dochodzeniowej, gdzie zajmował się szczególnie wymagającymi sprawami żołnierzy Armii Amerykańskiej. Kiedy odszedł z wojska, Reacher rozpoczął życie jako włóczęga, a przez wrodzoną ciekawość często pakował się w różne intrygi, pościgi oraz tajemnice. Jack Reacher mierzy się z kolejnymi wyzwaniami i zagadkami, a także niejednym fałszywym oskarżeniem. Na serię składają się tytuły: "Poziom śmierci", "Umrzeć próbując" (także znane jako "Uprowadzony"), "Wróg bez twarzy", "Podejrzany", "Echo w płomieniach", "Bez pudła", "Siła perswazji", "Nieprzyjaciel", “Jednym strzałem”, "Bez litości", "Elita zabójców", "Nic do stracenia", "Jutro możesz zniknąć", "61 godzin", "Czasami warto umrzeć", "Ostatnia sprawa", "Poszukiwany", “Nigdy nie wracaj”, "Sprawa osobista", "Zmuś mnie", "Sto milionów dolarów", "Adres nieznany" oraz "Nocna runda". Znajdziecie je wszystkie na Woblink - czekają na Was jako książki papierowe, audiobooki lub ebooki (epub, mobi, pdf).
Czasami pojawia się poważny dylemat - czy mamy do czynienia z sensacją, czy z kryminałem? Granice pomiędzy tymi dwoma gatunkami bywają bardzo nieostre, postaramy się jednak pomóc. Obydwa opierają się na niespodziewanych rozwiązaniach fabularnych, jednak kryminał odróżnia od sensacji przede wszystkim fakt, że jego głównym wątkiem niezmiennie pozostaje zbrodnia, której zagadkę próbują z reguły rozwiązać bohaterowie powieści. Kryminały są zatem bardziej oparte na rozważaniach dotyczących sensu życia, wartości czy ludzkich działań niż doświadczeń zmysłowych, które z kolei są głównym elementem wyróżniającym literaturę sensacyjną. Tutaj czytelnik aktywnie zaangażowany jest przede wszystkim w odczuwanie fizycznych doświadczeń, jakich doświadczają zaprezentowani w książce ludzie. Wszystko dzieje się tam dynamicznie, znacznie mniej niż w kryminale jest tu także skupienia na wyglądzie bohaterów czy opisach miejsc, a racjonalnie zbudowana zagadka rozwiązuje się wraz z końcem historii. To oczywiście dzieje się także w kryminałach, tu jednak dość często zakończenie ma gorzki smak - choć zabójca zostaje odnaleziony, nie przynosi to upragnionej satysfakcji i zadośćuczynienia. Tak dzieje się chociażby w klasycznych już kryminałach noir autorstwa Raymonda Chandlera, takich jak “Wysokie okno”, “Głęboki sen” czy “Żegnaj laleczko”, które znajdziecie na Woblink jako ebooki w formatach epub, mobi lub pdf. Do jednych z najbardziej uznanych autorów polskich kryminałów należą z pewnością Katarzyna Bonda (“Urodzony morderca”, “Do cna”, seria “Cztery żywioły Saszy Załuskiej”) oraz Remigiusz Mróz ( seria z Joanną Chyłką, "Widmo Brockenu ", "Langer"), którzy od wielu lat zajmują najwyższe miejsca na listach bestsellerowych powieści. Z kolei kryminały retro, osadzone w przeszłości, tworzy w Polsce chociażby Marek Krajewski - do nich należy jego seria powieści Eberhardzie Mocku, na którą składają się między innymi “Śmierć w Breslau”, “Mock. Golem” czy “Błaganie o śmierć”.
Szukacie czegoś z dreszczykiem, a przy tym dużą dawką humoru? Komedie kryminalne to coś dla Was! Sięgnijcie po książki autorstwa Maryli Szymiczkowej - pod tym pseudonimem kryją się pisarze Jacek Denhel oraz Piotr Tarczyński. Stworzone przez nich powieści to także kryminały retro, które opowiadają o licznych zagadkach kryminalnych, które rozwiązuje fikcyjna krakowska profesorowa Zofia Szczupaczyńska. Wśród dzieł Marii Szymiczkowej znajdują się takie tytuły jak: “Seans w domu egipskim”, “Złoty róg” czy “Rozdarta zasłona” pełne nie tylko tajemnic i intryg, ale także charakterystycznego poczucia humoru i lekkości.
Niewątpliwie ważnymi pozycjami wśród ebooków kryminalnych są te zaliczane do kryminału skandynawskiego. Pełne elementów charakterystycznych dla powieści noir, trudnych tematów oraz nierzadko atmosfery ciężkiej od wzajemnych podejrzeń, niepewności i wrogości kryminały skandynawskie nie od dziś cieszą się ogromną popularnością na całym świecie. Wśród nich warto wskazać na Jo Nesbø i jego seria z Harrym Holem, niepokornym i nieuznającym kompromisów policjantem stosującym niekonwencjonalne metody, dzięki którym ma tyle samo przyjaciół, co wrogów. Jego zmagania znajdziecie w tomach “Człowiek-nietoperz", "Karaluchy", "Czerwone gardło", "Trzeci klucz", "Pentagram", "Wybawiciel", "Pierwszy śnieg", "Pancerne serce", "Upiory", "Policja", "Pragnienie" czy "Nóż". Szukajcie ich wszystkich na Woblink!
Zarówno w thrillerach, jak i kryminałach mamy do czynienia z jakąś zagadką i tajemnicą, napięciem, a także silnymi emocjami. Czym zatem różnią się od siebie te dwa gatunki literackie? W niektórych wypadkach trudno jednoznacznie przyporządkować powieść do któregoś z nich. W kryminale mamy do czynienia ze śledztwem i łamigłówką kryminalną, którą próbuje rozwikłać detektyw lub policjant. W thrillerze także spotkamy się z różnego typu tajemnicami, jednak nad ich rozwiązaniem pracują nie tylko ci funkcjonariusze - tak dzieje się na przykład w thrillerze prawniczym, gdzie głównymi bohaterami są osoby związane ze środowiskiem prawniczym takie jak sędziowie, adwokaci czy prokuratorzy. Należy do nich na przykład bardzo popularny cykl powieści autorstwa Remigiusza Mroza oparty na postaci Joanny Chyłki. Bezwzględna i bezkompromisowa prawniczka staje w szranki z niesprawiedliwością nie tylko na salach sądowych, ale także na miejscach zbrodni. Jej historia zawarta jest w powieściach: “Kasacja”, „Zaginięcie”, „Rewizja”, „Immunitet”, „Inwigilacja”, „Oskarżenie”, „Testament”, „Kontratyp”, „Umorzenie”, „Wyrok”, „Ekstradycja”, „Precedens¨, „Afekt”, „Egzekucja” czy „Skazanie”, wszystkich dostępnych na Woblink. Innym znanym komisarzem, który jest głównym bohaterem powieści Mroza, jest Wiktor Forst, który mierzy się z licznymi zbrodniami przede wszystkim w okolicach Tatr. Znajdziecie je w tomach: „Ekspozycja”, „Przewieszenie”, „Trawers”, „Deniwelacja”, „Zerwa”, „Halny” bądź „Przepaść”.
Obok thrillerów psychologicznych innym chętnie czytanym podtypem tego gatunku jest thriller medyczny. Ich akcja rozgrywa się w środowisku medycznym i często dotyczy zaskakujących zbrodni popełnianych właśnie wśród jego przedstawicieli. Akcja obejmuje często zagrożenia z zakresu biologii medycznej, inżynierii genetycznej lub biotechnologii. Jedną z czołowych przedstawicielek tego nurtu jest Tess Gerritsen. Jej cykl książek o detektyw Jane Rizzoli i doktor Laurze Isles, na podstawie którego powstał serial “Partnerki”, rozpoczyna powieść “Chirurg”. Jej akcja rozgrywa się w Bostonie, po którym grasuje nieznany morderca polujący na samotne młode kobiety, nazywany przez prasę Chirurgiem z racji swoich okrutnych metod. Policja odnajduje trop - podobne zbrodnie miały miejsce dwa lata wcześniej, tyle że sprawca został zastrzelony przez doktor Catherine Cordell, jedyną ofiarę, której udało się przeżyć. Teraz znów czuje się jak w potrzasku - jej jedynym sprzymierzeńcem wydaje się być Thomas Moore, który wraz z Jane Rizzoli prowadzi to śledztwo. Czy jednak uda mu się ocalić Cordell przed genialnym skalpelem mordercy? Dowiedzcie się, sięgając po “Chirurga”, którego znajdziecie na Woblink jako ebook w formacie epub, mobi lub pdf. Innym niezwykle popularnym twórcą thrillerów medycznych jest Robin Cook, uważany za mistrza tego gatunku. Głównymi bohaterami jego bestsellerowego cyklu powieści są patolog Jack Stapleton i jego współpracowniczka Laurie Montgomery. Spotkacie ich w takich tomach jak: “Interwencja”, “Marker”, “Ciało obce” czy “Niebezpieczna gra”.
Amy Engel, B. A. Paris, Fiona Barton, Jenny Blackhurst czy Sharon Bolton - to tylko kilka nazwisk spośród wielu autorów i autorek, którzy tworzą thrillery psychologiczne. Skupiają się one przede wszystkim na motywacjach i przeżyciach bohaterów. Często za punkt wyjścia obierają zwyczajnego, niczym nie wyróżniającego się człowieka, który niespodziewanie zostaje wrzucony w wir zagadkowych, zaskakujących, często mocno niepokojących wydarzeń. F abuły thrillerów psychologicznych do końca trzymają nas w ogromnym napięciu i niepewności. Zaliczyć można do nich “Żmijowisko” Wojciecha Chmielarza kojarzonego bardziej z kryminałami, sięgającego jednak również do bogactwa nurtu thrillerów psychologicznych. Także “Zaginiona dziewczyna” Gillian Flynn, “Jedno po drugim” Ruth Ware, “Złota klatka” Camilli Läckberg czy “Nieznajomy” Harlana Cobena należą do tego podgatunku. Te i wiele innych kryminałów, sensacji oraz thrillerów znajdziecie na Woblink jako książki papierowe, audiobooki lub ebooki (epub, mobi, pdf) - dajcie się porwać pełnym napięcia i emocji historiom!
