The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

In the words of that unique and brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes, "There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact." His opinion is amply proven in these famous stories. Mysteries, thefts and murders in the foggy, gaslit streets of late Victorian London, or in the country mansions of the well-to-do, provide Holmes with some of his most demanding cases.

Jamaica Inn

Daphne du Maurier

On a bitter November evening, young Mary Yellan journeys across the rainswept moors to Jamaica Inn in honour of her mother's dying request. Terrified of the inn's brooding power, Mary gradually finds herself ensnared in the dark schemes being enacted behind its crumbling walls -- and tempted to love a man she dares not trust.

The Hobbit

J.R.R. Tolkien

Bilbo Baggins is a reluctant partner in a perilous quest in search of dragon-guarded gold, a comfort-loving hobbit, who surprises even himself by his resourcefulness and skill as a burglar. Encounters with trolls, goblins, dwarves, elves and giant spiders, and a rather unwilling presence at the Battle of Five Armies are just some of the adventures that befall Bilbo.

Dracula

Bram Stoker

Jonathan Harker travels to Transylvania on business for a mysterious Count. Months later in England, Lucy Westenra falls ill and dies, inexplicably, as if from a severe loss of blood. Lucy's friends, including Jonathan's fiancée Mina and the intrepid doctor Van Helsing, must begin a desperate battle against a powerful, ancient evil, in Bram Stoker's definitive gothic tale.

Jane Eyre

Charlotte Bronte

As an orphan, Jane's childhood is not an easy one but her independence and strength of character keep her going through the miseries inflicted by cruel relatives and a brutal school. Taking a job as a governess in a house full of secrets, for a passionate man she grows attracted to, ultimately forces Jane to call on all her resources in order to hold on to her beliefs.

Carrie

Stephen King

Carrie White is no ordinary girl. Carrie White has the gift of telekinesis. To be invited to the Prom by Tommy Ross is a dream come true, and a step towards social acceptance by her high school peers. But events take a macabre turn on that horrifying and endless night.  This is a groundbreaking masterpiece that redefined the genre of horror.

A Certain Justice

P.D. James

Venetia Aldridge QC is a distinguished barrister. Then she agrees to defend Garry Ashe, and four weeks later is dead. Commander Adam Dalgliesh, finds motives among her clients, colleagues, family - even her lover. A second brutal murder draws them into greater complexities of intrigue and evil.

The Haunted House

Charles Dickens

Having moved into an abandoned house, the narrator, invites a party of friends over, setting them the task of driving out the ghosts and reporting back on Twelfth Night. The resulting ghost stories form the basis of a thrilling narrative. For this work, Dickens enlisted writers, including Elizabeth Gaskell and Wilkie Collins, to collaborate with him on a Victorian supernatural classic.

The Woman in Black

Susan Hill

Arthur Kipps, a junior solicitor, is summoned to attend the funeral Mrs Alice Drablow, Eel Marsh House's sole inhabitant, unaware of the secrets hidden behind the shuttered windows. When he glimpses a woman dressed in black, that a sense of unease begins to take hold, deepened by the reluctance of the locals to talk of the woman in black - and her terrible purpose.

Peter Pan

J.M. Barrie

Peter Pan comes to the night nursery of the Darling children and teaches them to fly.  Taking them to Never-Never Land, where they find Red Indians, wolves, Mermaids and...Pirates, the most frightening of all is the sinister Captain Hook. After lots of adventures, the story reaches its exciting climax as Peter, Wendy and the children do battle with Hook and his band.

Outer Dark

Carmac McCarthy

A woman bears her brother's child; the brother leaves the baby in the woods and tells her he died of natural causes. Discovering her brother's lie, she sets out to find her son. Both brother and sister wander separately through a countryside being scourged by three terrifying and elusive strangers, headlong toward an eerie, apocalyptic resolution.

Killer in the Rain

Raymond Chandler

Here are eight of Chandler's finest stories including The Man Who Liked Dogs, The Lady in the Lake and Bay City Blues. Sharper than a hoodlum's switchblade, more exciting than an unexpected red-head and stronger than a double shot of whisky, they are packed full of the punchy poetry and laconic wit that makes Chandler the undisputed master of his genre.