[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.

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[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.

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[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.

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[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.

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[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.

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[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.

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[Free eBook] When the Wind Blows by Marguerite Steen [Vintage Literary Novel]

When the Wind Blows 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 drama novel, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour’s The Odyssey Press imprint.

This was originally published in 1931 by Cassell and Company. This novel is set on a South Atlantic island, which has changed very little since missionaries have settled upon it to convert the locals in the late 19th century, even as the world beyond its shores has moved on to the post-WWI period.

The story is centred around the enduring spirit of a young woman growing up who is attuned to the island environment but a misfit to the settler community, whose harsh treatment by her parents and elders leads to troubles on the antiquated island, which is forever changed when she meets the passengers of a shipwreck from the modern outside world.

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[Free eBook] Duel in the Dark by Marguerite Steen [Vintage Literary Novel]

Duel in the Dark 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 drama 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 1928 by Geoffrey Bles. The story is a period-contemporary literary romantic drama (may not end in HEA) featuring a cross-generational competition between two strong-willed theatre women. An older actress in ill health is in the care of her ambitious granddaughter, whose affections become divided when a handsome scriptwriter begins paying more attention to the once-famous star than her love-smitten grandchild, who begins plotting to secure his affections for herself, with results that may prove farcical… or tragic.

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