LED ASTRAY and THE SPHINX

by Octave Feuillet

Two of Octave Feuillet's classic short novels, "Led Astray" and "The Sphinx; or, Julia de Trecoeur," are paired in this collection. Feuillet (1821-1890) was one of the premiere French writers of his day. His best-known work remains "Monsieur de Camors" (1867).

158 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2005

About the author

Octave Feuillet (11 August 1821 – 29 December 1890) was a French novelist and dramatist.

Reviews

[Kezia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grabbed these two compact novellas via the iPad's "Free Books" app of public-domain books. I gather they are not among his best known works. The first is epistolary, about a Parisian working to preserve the ruins of a historic rural church who finds himself mixing with the local gentry. The second, the story of a widow who remarries against the wishes of her willful teen daughter, has a juicy gothic tone. They are both swift reads.

At first, I thought I preferred 'The Sphinx,' but I must say the character of the gentleman - who was not himself 'Led Astray,' nor did he lead anyone else astray - has stuck with me. There's more subtlety, versus the almost excessively awkward suspense in the Sphinx. I would certainly sample more of Feuillet's works, should the ol' iPad produce them. Thanks, iPad.