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New Method Readers #7
Dead Man's Rock: A Romance
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1887
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About the author
Arthur Quiller-Couch
634Ìýbooks63ÌýfollowersSir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch was a Cornish writer, who published under the pen name of Q. He is primarily remembered for the monumental "Oxford Book of English Verse 1250-1900" (later extended to 1918), and for his literary criticism. He guided the taste of many who never met him, including American writer Helene Hanff, author of 84 Charing Cross Road, its sequel, Q's Legacy, and the putatively fictional Horace Rumpole via John Mortimer, his literary amanuensis.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 18, 2019
Q's first novel, a romance slavishly in the style of Robert Louis Stevenson.
Jasper Trenoweth is the typically hapless protagonist, a young boy at the outset of the story, about to be orphaned by the skulduggery of the formidable Simon Colliver.
Jasper's grandfather left an extraordinary will containing details about the secret whereabouts of the famed Great Ruby of Ceylon, an historically genuine gem of immense size mentioned by, among other, Marco Polo.
Burried treasure, cryptic clues, a journal forming part of the narrative, and a plot reliant on outrageous coincidence; all of the Stevenson tropes are lovingly adhered to.
I'm not really a fan of the formula. The passive inferiority of the hero to the villain always frustrates me. "Mr. Trenoweth, it grieves me to taunt your miserable case; but do you mind my saying that you are a fool?" Colliver has every right to his quarry.
Quiller-Couch would go on to do much better than this once he found his own voice.
Jasper Trenoweth is the typically hapless protagonist, a young boy at the outset of the story, about to be orphaned by the skulduggery of the formidable Simon Colliver.
Jasper's grandfather left an extraordinary will containing details about the secret whereabouts of the famed Great Ruby of Ceylon, an historically genuine gem of immense size mentioned by, among other, Marco Polo.
Burried treasure, cryptic clues, a journal forming part of the narrative, and a plot reliant on outrageous coincidence; all of the Stevenson tropes are lovingly adhered to.
I'm not really a fan of the formula. The passive inferiority of the hero to the villain always frustrates me. "Mr. Trenoweth, it grieves me to taunt your miserable case; but do you mind my saying that you are a fool?" Colliver has every right to his quarry.
Quiller-Couch would go on to do much better than this once he found his own voice.
October 31, 2013
I picked this book up in a charity shop not knowing anything about its author but intrigued by the adventure story element reminiscent of Robert Louis Stevenson. What I discovered on the internet was that this was the author's first novel, published in 1887, and that it was the start of a long series of 'Tales & Romances', mainly set in Cornwall where Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch was born & lived for a large part of his life.
His stories include adventure, comedy, historical novels, all of which were very popular in their day but largely forgotten now. The author was also a very distinguished literary critic and compiler of the Oxford Book Of English Verse 1250-1900.
Dead Man's Rock is a fairly naive 1st novel, a romance in the vein of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, with hidden treasure, tragedy, romance & a cunningly evil villain. The story is fast-paced though heavily reliant on incredible coincidences & is patently ridiculous, but at the same time utterly charming & enjoyable. The author himself in his forward of this 1928 edition rates the book as not terribly good but is fond of it as a first effort. Indeed, in 1898 he completed Robert Louis Stevenson's unfinished novel, St. Ives.
I would recommend Dead Man's Rock to anyone out there who loves an old-fashioned, rip-snorting ripping yarn!
His stories include adventure, comedy, historical novels, all of which were very popular in their day but largely forgotten now. The author was also a very distinguished literary critic and compiler of the Oxford Book Of English Verse 1250-1900.
Dead Man's Rock is a fairly naive 1st novel, a romance in the vein of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, with hidden treasure, tragedy, romance & a cunningly evil villain. The story is fast-paced though heavily reliant on incredible coincidences & is patently ridiculous, but at the same time utterly charming & enjoyable. The author himself in his forward of this 1928 edition rates the book as not terribly good but is fond of it as a first effort. Indeed, in 1898 he completed Robert Louis Stevenson's unfinished novel, St. Ives.
I would recommend Dead Man's Rock to anyone out there who loves an old-fashioned, rip-snorting ripping yarn!
April 5, 2019
This is a complete waste of time.
Certainly the title seems quite enthralling, but the story is as awful as it can be.
Certainly the title seems quite enthralling, but the story is as awful as it can be.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
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