Elizabeth Bennet is at first determined to dislike Mr. Darcy, who is handsome and eligible. This misjudgment only matched in folly by Darcy's arrogant pride. Their first impressions give way to truer feelings in a comedy concerned with happiness and how it might be achieved. Jane Austen was born in Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775. Her father, the Reverend George Austen, was rector of Steventon, where she spent her first twenty-five years, along with her six brothers (two of them later naval officers in the Napoleonic wars) and her adored sister, Cassandra. She read voraciously from an early age, counting among her favorites the novels of Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, and Fanny Burney, and the poetry of William Cowper and George Crabbe. Her family was lively and affectionate and they encouraged her precocious literary efforts, the earliest dating from age twelve, which already displayed the beginnings of her comic style. Her first novels, Elinor and Marianne (1796) and First Impressions (1

Set during the Napoleonic wars, Vanity Fair (1847-8) famously satirizes worldly society. The novel revolves around the exploits of the impoverished but beautiful and devious Becky Sharp, and Amelia Sedley, pampered child of a rich City merchant. Despite the differences in their fortunes and characters, they find their lives entangled from childhood. As Becky's maneuvering ingratiates her with high society, the financial ruin of Amelia's father forces Amelia into poverty. Destiny, of course, has further adventures in store for both women, whose lives Thackeray (1811-63) uses as theatres for the whims and foibles of their contemporaries. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. 作者简介： WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY was born in India to a long line of Yorkshire gentry recently mixed with equally ancient gentry. In 1817, two years after the death of his father a prosperous official of the East India Company, the boy was sent back to England. There he underwent

None of the great Victorian novels is more vivid and readable than The Mayor of Casterbridge. Set in theheart of Hardy's Wessex. the partly real, partly dreamcotintry' he founded on his native Dorset, it charts therise and self-induced downfall of a single man ofcharacter. The fast-moving and ingeniously contrivednarrative is Shakespearian in its tragic force, andfeatures some of the authors most striking episodesand brilliant passages of de*ion.

"In the small town of Innocence, Mississippi, days are long,nights are fragrant, and secrets are hard to keep. But when abrutal killer starts claiming the lives of the town's mostattractive women, lifelong neighbors are forced to wonder if theculprit is a stranger lurking in the bayou...or someone right nextdoor." Burned out by a whirlwind career, world-famous concertviolinist Caroline Waverly arrives in Innocence looking for alittle peace and some time to think. She hopes that a stay at herlate grandmother's house--the one with a covered porch just madefor soft summer nights--will provide the tranquillity she needs.But Innocence has something else to offer Caroline: handsome,charming Tucker Longstreet. Tucker is known for keeping hisromances short and shallow. But one look at Caroline, and Tuckerrealizes that she is unlike any other woman he's met. The coollyreserved Caroline feels an unexpected thrill at his ardentadvances. But when she discovers a third murder victim in the murkywaters behind her ho

Hollywood homicide detective Petra Connor takes center stage inbestseller Kellerman's elaborate, suspenseful, albeit improbable,thriller. Connor, who assisted Kellerman's main series detective,psychologist Alex Delaware, in 2003's A Cold Heart, proves anengaging protagonist, fully capable of carrying a story on her own.She's investigating a seemingly random drive-by shooting thatclaimed four teenage victims when a precocious 22-year-old graduatestudent intern, Isaac Gomez, presents her with evidence that aserial killer has struck on the same day, June 28, every year forthe past six years. Though his proof relies entirely on astatistical analysis he's performed, his unquestioned brillianceprompts Connor to do a little extracurricular digging that turns upsuggestive clues supporting Gomez's theory. Meanwhile, afterdoggedly pursuing even the slightest lead in the drive-by shootingcase, Connor suspects that one of the victims, perhaps the one whowasn't claimed by any next-of-kin, was deliberately targeted. While

Great Expectations: A Kaplan Vocabulary Building Classic for Young Readers features: More than 400 vocabulary words on the pages facing the text of the story to help students aged 9-12 improve their vocabulary while reading classic literature； Glossary of important vocabulary words； 1 page of discussion questions； 1 page of tips for writing a book report.

When friends stop trusting each other, Darkness is there to fan the flames…. Things have turned black at the House of Night. Zoey Redbird’s soul has shattered. With everything she’s ever stood for falling apart, and a broken heart making her want to stay in the Otherworld forever, Zoey’s fading fast. It’s seeming more and more doubtful that she will be able pull herself back together in time to rejoin her friends and set the world to rights. As the only living person who can reach her, Stark must find a way to get to her. But how? He will have to die to do so, the Vampyre High Council stipulates. And then Zoey will give up for sure. There are only 7 days left… Enter BFF Stevie Rae. She wants to help Z but she has massive problems of her own. The rogue Red Fledglings are acting up, and this time not even Stevie Rae can protect them from the consequences. Her kinda boyfriend, Dallas, is sweet but too nosy for his own good. The truth is, Stevie Rae’s hiding a secret that

In The Sackett Brand, Louis L'Amour spins the story of acourageous man who must face overwhelming odds to track down akiller. Tell Sackett and his bride Ange came to Arizona to build ahome and start a family. But on Black Mesa something goes terriblywrong. Tell is ambushed and badly injured. When he finally managesto drag himself back to where he left Ange, she is gone. Desperate,cold, hungry, and with nothing to defend himself, Tell is stalkedlike a wounded animal. Hiding from his attackers, his rage andfrustration mount as he tries to figure out who the men are, whythey are trying to kill him, and what has happened to his wife.Discovering the truth will be risky. And when he finally does, itwill be their turn to run.

Book De*ion Dean Koontz’s uniquetalent for writing terrifying thrillers with a heart and soul isnowhere more evident than in this latest suspense masterpiece thatpits one man against the ultimate deadline. If there were speedlimits for the sheer pulse-racing excitement allowed in one novel,Velocity would break them all. Get ready for the ride of yourlife. From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. A diabolic killer plays a harrowing game of catand mouse with a reclusive bartender in Koontz's latest grippingsuspense thriller. Billy Wiles, a 30-something bartender and formerwriter, is content with his solitary Napa County existencelistening to "beer-based psychoanalysis" from tavern regulars;visiting his hospitalized, comatose fiancée, Barbara; and carvingwood sculptures. But the simple life gets mighty complicated whenhe finds a note with a deadly, time-sensitive ultimatum: he mustchoose between the death of a young schoolteacher or an elderlyhumanitarian in six hours. Reluctant local s

Castigated for offending against public decency, Madame Bovary has rarely failed to cause a storm. For Flaubert"s contemporaries, the fascination came from the novelist"s meticulous account of provincial manners. For the writer,subject matter was subordinate to his anguished quest for aesthetic perfection. For his twentieth-century successors the formal experiments that underpin Madame Bovary look forward to the innovations of contemporary fiction. Flaubert s protagonist in particular has never ceased to fascinate. Rornantic heroine or middle-class neurotic, flawed wife and mother or passionate protestor against the conventions of bourgeois society, simultaneously the subject of Flaubert s admiration and the butt of his irony - Emma Bovary remains one of the most enigmatic of fictional creations. Flaubert s meticulous approach to the craft of fiction, his portrayal of contemporary reality, his representation of an unforgettable cast of characters make Madame Bovary one of the major landmarks of mode

The Diary of a Nobody is so unassuming a work that even its author, George Grossmith, seemed unaware that he had produced a masterpiece. For more than a century this wonderfully comic portrayal of suburban life and values has remined in print, a source of delight to generations of readers, and a major literary influence, much imitated but never equalled. If you don't recognise yourself at some point in The Diary you are probably less than human. If you can read it without laughing aloud you have no sense of humour.

Filled with exciting tales of the frontier, the chronicle ofthe Sackett family is perhaps the crowning achievement of one ofour greatest storytellers.In The Warrior's Path, Louis L'Amourtells the story of Yance and Kin Sackett, two brothers who are thelast hope of a young woman who faces a fate worse than death. WhenYance Sackett's sister-in-law is kidnapped, he and Kin race northfrom Carolina to find her. They arrive at a superstitious town rifewith rumors--and learn that someone very powerful was behindDiana's disappearance. To bring the culprit to justice, one brothermust sail to the exotic West Indies. There, among pirates,cutthroats, and ruthless "businessmen," he will apply the skills helearned as a frontiersman to an unfamiliar world--a world where onefalse move means instant death.

When Samantha Harrigan attends the local rodeo, she doesn'texpect to wind up in jail. But that's what happens when she triesto stop a drunkard from abusing his horse. Tucker Coulter, ahandsome local veterinarian, comes to her defense, and both of themare arrested. The charges are dropped, but Sam's troubles have onlystarted...

The Wordsworth Classics Shakespeare Series presents a newly-edited sequence of William Shakespeare s works. The textual editing endeavours to take account of recent scholarship while giving the material a careful reappraisal. Romeo and luliet is the world s most f amous drama of tragic young love.Defying the feud which divides their families Romeo and luliet enjoy the fleeting rapture of courtship marriage and sexual fulfilment but a combination of old animosities and new coincidences brings them to suicidal deaths. This play offers a rich mixture of romantic lyricism bawdy comedy intimate harmony and sudden violence Long successful in the theatre it has also generated numerous operas ballets and films and these have helped to make Romeo and Juliet perennially topical.

Pride and Prejudice, which opens with one of the most famous sentences in English Literature, is an ironic novel of manners. In it the garrulous and empty-headed Mrs Bennet has only one aim - that of finding a good match for each of her five daughters. In this she is mocked by her cynical and indolent husband. With its wit, its social precision and, above all, its irresistible heroine, Pride and Prejudice has proved one of the most enduringly popular novels in the English language.

ENDURING LITERATURE ILLUMINATED BY PRACTICAL SCHOLARSHIP. A timeless, terrifying tale of one man's obsession to create life -- and the monster that became his legacy. EACH ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES: A concise introduction that gives readers important background information； A chronology of the author's life and work； A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context； An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations； Detailed explanatory notes； Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work； Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction； A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience. Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics

Exiled by superstition and betrayal from Lantern Yard, and cut off from faith and human love, for fifteen years the solitary simple-hearted weaver Silas Marner has plied his loom in Raveloe and devoted himself to the amassing of a hoard of golden guineas. Silas's chance of redemption, when it appears one New Year's Eve, is intimately connected with the fate of Godfrey Cass, son of the village Squire. Clandestinely married, then blackmailed by his dissolute brother Dunstan, Godfrey like Silas has been trapped by his past, from which he is seeking to escape. Humorous, richly symbolic, subtly characterized and meticulously plotted, George Eliot's 'sudden inspiration' in this slim novel of rural England cut across her plans for Romola, her vast Italian Renaissance epic.

With his bestselling blend of nail-biting intensity, daringartistry, and storytelling magic, Dean Koontz returns with anemotional roller coaster of a tale filled with enough twists,turns, shocks, and surprises for ten ordinary novels. Here is thestory of five days in the life of an ordinary man born to anextraordinary legacy—a story that will challenge the way you lookat good and evil, life and death, and everything in between. Jimmy Tock comes into the world on the very night his grandfatherleaves it. As a violent storm rages outside the hospital, Rudy Tockspends long hours walking the corridors between the expectantfathers' waiting room and his dying father's bedside. It's astrange vigil made all the stranger when, at the very height of thestorm's fury, Josef Tock suddenly sits up in bed and speakscoherently for the frist and last time since his stroke. What he says before he dies is that there will be five dark days inthe life of his grandson—five dates whose terrible events Jimmywill have to prepar

Widely regarded as one of Edith Wharton"s greatest achievements, The Age of Innocence is not only subtly satirical, but also a sometimes dark and disturbing comedy of manners in its exploration of the‘eternal triangle" of love. Set against the backdrop of upper-class New York society during the 1870s, the author"s combination of powerful prose combined with a thoroughly researched and meticulous evocation of the manners and style of the period, has delighted readers since the novel"s first publication in 1920. In 1921 The Age of Innocence achieved a double distinction - it won the Pulitzer Prize and it was the first time this prestigious award had been won by a woman author.

Filled with exciting tales of the frontier, the chronicle ofthe Sackett family is perhaps the crowning achievement of one ofour greatest storytellers. In Ride the Dark Trail L'Amour tells thestory of Logan Sackett, a cynical drifter who changes his ways tohelp a widow keep her land from falling into the wronghands.... Logan Sackett was wild and rootless, riding west in search ofeasy living. Then he met Emily Talon, a fiery old widow who waseven wilder than he was. Tall and lean, Em was determined to defendherself against the locals who were trying to steal her land. Logan didn't want to get involved, until he found out that Em hadbeen born a Sackett. Em was bucking overwhelming odds, but Loganwouldn't let her stand alone. For even the rebellious drifter knewthat part of being a Sackett was backing up your family when theyneeded you.

They came by river and by wagon train, braving the endlessdistances of the Great Plains and the icy passes of the SierraNevada. They were men like Linus Rawlings, a restless survivor ofIndian country who'd headed east to see the ocean but left hisheart--and his home--in the West. They were women like LilithPrescott, a smart, spirited beauty who fled her family and fell fora gambling man in the midst of a frontier gold boom. Thesepioneering men and women sowed the seeds of a nation with theircourage--and with their blood. Here is the story of how their pathswould meet amid the epic struggle against fierce enemies andnature's cruelty, to win for all time the rich and untamedWest.

Read on to catch up with more gossip-licious pleasure from the anonymous narrator who made her catty debut with "Gossip Girl" and has enthralled readers in the juicy sequels, "You Know You Love Me" and "All I Want is Everything". In "Because I'm Worth It", Gossip Girl dishes up more doses of hefty dirt on all her friends - New York's wealthiest private school teens. In fact, wintertime has never been hotter in NYC as things steam up all over Fifth Avenue. Sharp wit, intriguing characters, and high-stakes melodrama drive the action of this wildly popular series.

Filled with exciting tales of the frontier, the chronicle ofthe Sackett family is perhaps the crowning achievement of one ofour greatest storytellers. In Treasure Mountain Louis L’Amourdelivers a robust story of two brothers searching to learn the fateof their missing father — and finding themselves in a struggle justto stay alive. Orrin and Tell Sackett had come to exotic New Orleans looking foranswers to their father’s disappearance twenty years before. Touncover the truth, the brothers enlisted the aid of a trailwisegypsy and a mysterious voodoo priest as they sought to re-createtheir father’s last trek. But Louisiana is a dangerous land, and with one misstep thebrothers could disappear in the bayous before they even set foot onthe trail that led to whatever legacy their father had left behind... and a secret worth killing for.