[Free eBook] Shelter by Marguerite Steen [Vintage WWII Literary Novel]

Shelter by the late English author Marguerite Steen, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature whose works enjoyed a period of popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, is a standalone vintage literary fiction novel with f/m romantic elements, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press’ The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1942 by Sun Dial Press.

The story was written contemporary to and takes place during WWII on the British homefront, set in 1940s London near the beginning of the Blitz, and is a domestic drama centred around the shifting relationship between two women caught up together in the war and connected by particular circumstances whether they like it or not.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] The Tavern by Marguerite Steen [Vintage 1930s Spain Literary Novel]

The Tavern by the late English author Marguerite Steen, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature whose works enjoyed a period of popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, is her vintage literary fiction drama novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press’ The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1935 by Victor Gollancz.

The story is set in Andalucia, Spain, exploring the various colourful personalities who frequent a small tavern and the married couple own it, where tensions arise when one owner tries to allow a wealthy local patron to use it to arrange extramarital liaisons and the other sabotages the plan, leading to reprisals and other unexpected occurrences.

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[Free eBook] The Debate Continues: Being the Autobiography of Marjorie Bowen by Marjorie Bowen [20th C Author Autobiography]

The Debate Continues: Being the Autobiography of Marjorie Bowen by the late English author Marjorie Bowen, a prolific multi-genre novelist who wrote under many other pseudonyms during the early mid-20th century and had several works adapted to film, is her vintage autobiography, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press.

This was originally published in 1939 by William Heinemann Ltd, and there’s a retrospective article about Bowen and her works as part of The Independent’s “Forgotten Authors” series, if you’re interested.

This autobiography details her early life spent in poverty and troubled family relationships as well as her attempts at self-education, and subsequent writing influences and career decisions.

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[Free eBook REPEAT] At Dusk All Cats Are Grey by Jerrard Tickell [1940s Literary Spy Thriller Satire]

At Dusk All Cats Are Grey by the late Irish author Jerrard Tickell, whose WWII cow-rescue comedy novel Appointment with Venus has been twice adapted to film, is his vintage literary espionage thriller novel, free again for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour’s The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1940 by Chapman & Hall Ltd. This is a hybrid humorous literary novel cum serious spy thriller, and tells a tragicomic tale taking place on the eve of WWII, as some Britons began to experience increasing unease about the pre-war European political scene.

The story is centred around a young British woman whose talent for languages gets her in over her head, as the eccentric characters at the advertising agency where she works take on a more sinister cast as they recruit her to inform upon the issues of a group of Austrian refugees.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] Matador by Marguerite Steen [Vintage 1930s Literary Novel]

Matador by the late British author Marguerite Steen, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature whose works enjoyed a period of popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, is her vintage literary fiction family drama novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press’ Odyssey imprint.

This was originally published in 1934 by Victor Gollancz. The novel is set in Spain during the 1930s, and is a family/social drama with f/m romantic suspense elements.

The story focuses on the conflicts between a matador father and his three sons—one dutifully following in his famous bull-fighting father’s footsteps, the second a disabled outcast, and the third and favourite hiding a dark secret—as they clash in their life expectations, with the tensions coming to a head as a young woman who is betrothed to marry one son catches the eyes of both another son and their widower father, as well.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] The One-Eyed Moon by Marguerite Steen [Vintage 1930s Literary Drama]

The One-Eyed Moon by the late British author Marguerite Steen, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature whose works enjoyed a period of popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, is her vintage standalone literary fiction drama novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press’ Odyssey imprint.

This was originally published in 1935 by Victor Gollancz. The story takes place in Spain in the troubled years prior to the Spanish Civil War of the late 1930s (which officially started after this novel was originally written).

This is a mixed personal, family, and political drama where a man and his wife, their conflicts exacerbated by very different backgrounds, and their daughter play out their probable tragedy against the backdrop of the greater national turmoil.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] A Harp in Lowndes Square by Rachel Ferguson [Literary Historical Novel with Paranormal]

A Harp in Lowndes Square by the late English author Rachel Ferguson, an early 20th century journalist and novelist whom Booker Prize-winning author A. S. Byatt cites as a literary influence, is her vintage literary fiction historical novel with paranormal elements, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Dean Street Press.

This was originally published in 1936 by Jonathan Cape, and this new edition contains an introduction by social historian Elizabeth Crawford, who has contributed articles to the UK government history blog.

The story takes place during the 1910s in England, against the backdrop of World War I, starring a pair of twins gifted with “the sight” which allows them to see and experience scenes from the past, which in turn leads them to uncover tragic secrets in their troubled family which they relive as though they were there.

Offered DRM-free worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] Thalia by Frances Faviell [Vintage Literary Historical Novel]

Thalia by Frances Faviell, a pseudonym for the late author and painter Olivia Faviell Lucas, is her vintage historical literary coming of age/journey of self-discovery novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Dean Street Press.

This was originally published in 1957 by Cassell, and this reprint edition contains a bonus newspaper story originally published in the London Evening Standard in 1957 and teased as a “guess if it’s fact or fiction” piece, The Unininvited Guest, set in India, which the author visited during her travels in the 1930s.

The story takes place in the 1930s, and stars a young London art student who travels to Brittany to act as the paid companion to a woman whose husband is stationed in India, and befriends the troubled teenaged daughter of the family as they both experience the pains of growing up in various ways, as well as assorted excursions in France.

Offered DRM-free worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] Spider by Marguerite Steen [Vintage Literary Novel]

Spider by the late British author Marguerite Steen, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature whose works enjoyed a period of popularity in the 1930s and 1940s, is her vintage literary fiction coming of age drama novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour’s The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1933 by Victor Gollancz. The story features a generational clash between a grandmother who has enshrined her late pianist and composer husband as a legend with herself at the forefront as his perfect muse, and a granddaughter who begins to question and think of challenging the family legend when it comes time to host the annual memorial festival.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.

[Free eBook] At Dusk All Cats Are Grey by Jerrard Tickell [Vintage Literary Espionage Novel]

At Dusk All Cats Are Grey by the late Irish author Jerrard Tickell, whose WWII cow-rescue comedy novel Appointment with Venus has been twice adapted to film, is his vintage literary espionage thriller novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour’s The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1940 by Chapman & Hall Ltd. This is a hybrid humorous literary novel cum serious spy thriller, and tells a tragicomic tale taking place on the eve of WWII, as some Britons began to experience increasing unease about the pre-war European political scene.

The story is centred around a young British woman whose talent for languages gets her in over her head, as the eccentric characters at the advertising agency where she works take on a more sinister cast as they recruit her to inform upon the issues of a group of Austrian refugees.

Offered worldwide, available at Amazon.