No Name (Penguin Classics)

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Blain, Virginia. "Introduction" and "Explanatory Notes" to Wilkie Collins's No Name. (World's Classics) Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986.

I. The Vanstone family assemble for breakfast. A mysterious letter arrives from New Orleans, which means Mr Vanstone and his wife must go to London on ‘family business’. Mr, Mrs and Miss Marrable – a family living in Evergreen Lodge, Clifton, fond of "private theatricals" XII. Wragge and Vanstone travel to London to arrange for the marriage licence. Mrs Lecount’s warning letter arrives, and Vanstone prevaricates. They all return to Aldborough. a b c d e f g Clarke, William M. (2003). Introduction to The Legacy of Cain. UK: Alan Sutton. pp.v–x. ISBN 0-7509-0453-4.a b c d e f The Cambridge Companion to Wilkie Collins; Chronology. Cambridge University Press. 2006. pp.xiii–xix. ISBN 0-521-84038-4.

From the supporting characters, the two villains - one male and the other female - were the best. Their cunning battle to outsmart the other was quite interesting to read. VI. At rehearsals for The Rivals Magdalen is a big success, and she goes on to play two parts. Her sister Norah disapproves, and Miss Garth worries what the success will lead to.

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for re-shaping the text of Collins's Frozen Deep is sufficient, as Brannan argues, to render him co- Their fathers agree to the marriage, but before it takes place Mr. Vanstone is killed in a train crash and Mrs. Vanstone dies in childbirth. The family lawyer, Mr. Pendril, tells Norah and Magdalen that despite appearances their parents had only been married for a few months, and their wedding invalidated the will which left everything to the daughters. In 1873–74, Collins toured the United States and Canada, giving readings of his work. The American writers he met included Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., and Mark Twain. He began a friendship with photographer Napoleon Sarony, who took several portraits of him. [18] Nicholas Rance, Wilkie Collins and Other Sensation Novelists: Walking the Moral Hospital, London: Palgrave-Macmillan, 1991.

receives a dismissive reply from his formidable housekeeper Mrs Lecount. Determined on revenge, she visits Noel in London, disguised as Miss

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One morning, Mr. and Mrs. Vanstone broke the quiet routine of the household with the announcement that they must go immediately to London on urgent but secret business. This announcement came after the arrival of a letter postmarked New Orleans. They were gone for almost a month. On their return, they refused to reveal by any statement or hint the nature of their trip. IV. Wragge flatters Mrs Lecount with his mugged-up science, and Vanstone is charmed by Magdalen, to whom he extends a tea invitation. I. Magdalen works as a maid for Admiral Bertram in the guise of Louisa. She is shown over the house by his old retainer Mazey, who sleeps guarding his master’s bedroom. By the end, the story turned out to be only moderately entertaining, suffering from a frustrating heroine in Magdalen and an overly long story. Due to its length, scenes were stretched out and each chapter often contained the same characters in scenes similar to the previous chapter. XI. Mrs Lecount receives a forged letter from Zurich and writes to Noel Vanstone warning him about Magdalen. Wragge confirms that she is bound for Zurich then makes plans to obtain the marriage licence from London.

Shall I tell you what a lady is? A lady is a woman who wears a silk gown, and has a sense of her own importance.” Shall I tell you what a lady is? A lady is a woman who wears a silk gown, and has a sense of her own importance." III. Miss Garth gets a letter from Mrs Vanstone explaining that Wragge is a penniless scrounger, and that she is in London to see a doctor, who has confirmed that she is pregnant. But this does not explain the letter from New Orleans. Not only the thriller in itself, but also the unconventional way of presenting the facts, the battle of Magdalen's conscience between good and evil and the outcome of the story teaches a lesson which is still useful nowadays. IV. Norah reveals hoe she discovered the Secret Trust hidden in a bowl of ashes. It leaves half of the inheritance to Magdalen, but she tears up the letter of Trust and accepts Kirke’s offer of marriage.

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Magdalen had been hurt by Frank Clare’s selfish and spiteful letter; she decided to marry Noel Vanstone and thus secure the fortune she believed rightfully hers and her sister’s. Using the money she had earned as an actress, she established Captain Wragge in a cottage near Noel’s house. She herself passed as Miss Bygrave, the captain’s niece. Shall I tell you what a lady is? A lady is a woman who wears a silk gown, and has a sense of her own importance.While I’ve read Collins’s more famous The Woman in White and The Moonstone, both several times, I hadn’t read the other two of what are considered his four major sensation novels: No Name and Armadale. I’m glad that I’ve begun to correct that oversight with this fun, well-plotted, and highly addictive book.