Russell Thorndike

Sybil Thorndike

Excerpt from Doctor Syn: A Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh The little church was old and homely, within easy cry of the sea; and it was pleasant on Sunday evenings, during the Doctor's long extempore prayers, to hear the swish and the lapping and continual grinding of the waves upon the sand. But church would come to an end at last, as most good things will, although there was a large proportion of the congregation - especially among the younger members - who considered that they could have even too much of a good thing. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

A Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh (Classic Reprint)

Doctor Syn

John Betancourt

Posing as a respectable vicar in Dymchurch at the turn of the 18th century, Dr. Syn is actually the retired pirate Captain Clegg. Clegg, believed hanged in Rye, is no longer being sought by the authorities. However, country life proves too tame for the good "Dr. Syn," and his attention turns to smuggling. He takes on a secret identity, "The Scarecrow," and leads a gang of smugglers known as the Marsh Men. They travel Romney Marsh by night on horseback, sometimes using mounts painted with phosphorus to give them a spectral appearance, spreading legends of supernatural evil and menace. Although a criminal, Syn's appeal is almost Robin Hoodlike. He uses his ill-gotten gains to help his parish, and the King's Men sent to ferret out him and his men are hardly a sympathetic lot, even though they represent the forces of law. It's little wonder that the Doctor Syn proved a hit among readers of its day.

A Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh

Well, there's some good in most wicked men, ' returned the Welshman, 'though I never found any in the leader of our smugglers. Tarroc Dolgenny has nothing to recommend him but a devilishly handsome face and a quick and daring brain. He is not even a faithful leader when his own interests are like to be thwarted, and he would as soon murder a follower as any enemy. The strange part is that, knowing his character, his men remain faithful to him.'

The Amazing Quest of Doctor Syn

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

Doctor Syn; A Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1915 edition. Excerpt: ...for at least a quarter of a minute before he said: "You most remarkable man! A King's captain, eh? I vow you have mistaken your calling." And he deliberately and with the flat of his white hand patted the captain's rough cheek, patted it as though the captain were a child being petted or a puppy being teased. "What the thunder do you mean?" roared the infuriated officer, "by calling? Mistake my calling?" "Your profession," said Doctor Syn, calmly putting on his cloak and hat. "What would you have me then?" cried the seaman. "I wouldn't have you any other than what you are, sir," replied Doctor Syn, with his hand on the door latch--"a thoroughly entertaining and vastly amusing old seadog, mahogany as a dinner wagon, and loaded with so many fancies as to be creaking near the breaking point." The captain was so taken aback with the extraordinary manner of the Doctor that he could only look and gasp. Doctor Syn, perfectly at ease, opened the door. "I wonder?" he said in a low voice, almost tenderly, Jerry thought. The captain, with a great effort, managed to ejaculate, "What?" "Why your mother sent you to sea, for as an apothecary--an apothecary--aye, yes, indeed, what a magnificent analyzing apothecary the world has missed in you, sir." And to the captain's amazement and Jerry's astonishment the vicar went out, closing the door behind him. The captain could do nothing but stare at the closed door, while Jerry, perceiving nothing entertaining in that, stared at the captain, who suddenly exploded out in his great sea voice: "An apothecary, an analyzing apothecary! What in the devil's name does he mean by that?" Jerry still looked at...

Doctor Syn; a Smuggler Tale of the Romney Marsh

"Dr. Syn's creator cannot but write interestingly. . . . Some of the strange stories are horrible and not for the squeamish." - "Sydney Morning Herald" "These tales of terror and violence are quite nightmarish in their exciting conception." - "Glasgow Evening News" ""Master of the Macabre" is certainly macabre and provides just what you want, if you enjoy reading of 'ghosts and ghoulies, long leggity beasties and things that go bump in the night.'" "The Star" (Sheffield) "It is all very good reading for a windy night, alone in front of an open fireplace." - "Winnipeg Tribune" "This book is strange, thrilling and certainly macabre." - "Yorkshire Evening Press" Tayler Kent flees London in a blinding snowstorm, hoping to escape the ghosts that haunt his home. Instead, he finds things may have gone from bad to worse when he crashes his car, breaks his ankle, and is forced to take refuge at a medieval monastery now inhabited by the eccentric Charles Hogarth, known as "The Master of the Macabre." As Kent's ankle heals, Hogarth entertains him with fine food, brandy, and a series of gruesome stories connected with an odd assortment of old relics on display in a curio cabinet. But the terrors are not confined to Hogarth's tales: the monastery is haunted by the evil spirit of an apostate monk and besieged by more corporeal foes, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on one of the Master's treasures. . . . Best known for his series of novels featuring the smuggler Dr. Syn, Russell Thorndike (1885-1972) in "The Master of the Macabre" (1947) delivers an irresistible mix of horror, adventure, and black humour that is sure to please fans of classic ghost stories and supernatural fiction. This first-ever republication of the novel includes the original jacket art and a new introduction by Mark Valentine.

The Master of the Macabre

Margery Allingham

Anthony Berkeley

The Detection Club

Freeman Wills Crofts

Agatha Christie

Ronald Knox

Six “perfect murders” by Margery Allingham, Dorothy L. Sayers, and other Golden Age Mystery authors of the Detection Club—plus an essay by Agatha Christie. Founded in England in the 1930s, the Detection Club brought together an impressive array of Golden Age Mystery authors. Their projects included The Floating Admiral, a whodunit in which twelve different writers contributed individual chapters, as well as Ask a Policeman, another collaboration in which the mystery writers swapped detectives to solve a murder. In Six Against the Yard, a half dozen mystery masters—Margery Allingham, Father Ronald Knox, Anthony Berkeley, Russell Thorndike, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Freeman Wills Crofts—each create a perfect crime, a seemingly unsolvable mystery. The stories are then analyzed by Ex-Superintendent Cornish, C.I.D., a real-life retired police detective, to see if they would indeed stump Scotland Yard. This edition also features an afterword by inaugural Detection Club member Agatha Christie on a true unsolved case of arsenic poisoning in Britain in 1929.

Russell Thorndike

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