Monroe Free Library

"A sapphic reimagining of Mary Shelley's youth, vividly exploring innocence, young love, gothic mystery and the roots of her literary masterpiece, Frankenstein. Switzerland, 1816. A volcanic eruption in Indonesia envelopes the whole of Europe in ash and cloud. Amid this "year without a summer," eighteen-year-old Mary Shelley and her lover Percy Bysshe Shelley arrive at Lake Geneva to visit Lord Byron and his companion John Polidori. Anguished by the...

With neither friends nor family, Lucy Snowe sets sail from England to find employment in a girls' boarding school in the small town of Villette. There she struggles to retain her self-possession in the face of unruly pupils, an initially suspicious headmaster, and her own complex feelings, first for the school's English doctor and then for the dictatorial professor Paul Emmanuel. Drawing on her own deeply unhappy experiences as a governess in Brussels,...

"Thorne Manor has always been haunted and it has always haunted Bronwyn Dale. As a young girl, Bronwyn could pass through a time slip in her great-aunt's house, where she'd visit William Thorne, a boy her own age, born two centuries earlier. In the wake of a family tragedy, the house was shuttered and Bronwyn was convinced that William existed only in her imagination. Twenty years later, Bronwyn inherits Thorne Manor, exactly when she needs it most,...

The first novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart, America's queen of crime This is the story of how a middle-aged spinster lost her mind, deserted her domestic gods in the city, took a furnished house for the summer out of town, and found herself involved in one of those mysterious crimes that keep our newspapers and detective agencies happy and prosperous. So says Rachel Innes, the spinster in question and one of the most remarkable heroines in American...

"Lily Black was presumed dead for years. Now, she's back in the unquestioning arms of her loving husband, Kane. Where she's been remains a mystery, but her past sins haunt her and bring deadly danger into the lives of the family. Meanwhile Aliyah, Kane's mother, has worked hard for her position of power. She has never believed Lily is who she says she is, and will stop at nothing to expose her. Amy, Kane's sister-in-law, has always been a pawn in...

When tragedy strikes on his son's wedding day, Lord Manfred believes it is a foreboding omen, and will do whatever it takes to stop it-no matter how immoral. Set in the 18th century, The Castle of Otranto begins on the day Manfred's son, Conrad, was meant to be married. Known for his sickly nature, Conrad is the eldest child of two, and is set to marry Princess Isabella, a union that would reap strong benefits for the noble family. However, when...

From the author of The Way Things Work, whose books have won numerous awards and sold millions of copies-and delighted readers young and old alike-this is a lively, detailed, and lavishly illustrated account of the building of a cathedral, and the community around it, through many decades. Caldecott Medal winner David Macaulay's imaginary Cathedral of Chutreaux remains a touchstone for budding architects as well as those interested in medieval history....

"Francine Thwaite has lived all her fifty-five years in her family's ancestral home, a rambling Elizabethan manor in England's Lake District. No other living soul resides there, but Francine isn't alone. There are ghosts in Thwaite Manor, harmless and familiar. Most beloved is Bree, the mischievous ghost girl who has been Francine's companion since childhood. When Francine's estranged sister, Madeleine, returns to the manor after years away, she brings...

A celebrated and feared English ghost is outraged when the new American owners of his haunting place refuse to take him seriously and actually fight back against him.

"A Room with a View" by E. M. Forster is a delightful and satirical exploration of the Edwardian society, love, and the clash between societal expectations and individual desires. Set against the picturesque backdrop of England and Italy, Forster's novel is a nuanced portrayal of the awakening of a young woman's spirit in the face of societal constraints. The story follows the journey of Lucy Honeychurch, a spirited and independent young woman...