A gothic adventure story, a classic tale with a feminist twist, a story of ambition and obsession, forbidden love and sabotage... 'It is not the monster you must fear, but the monster it makes of men...' Mary is the great-niece of Victor Frankenstein. She knows her great uncle disappeared in mysterious circumstances in the Arctic but she doesn't know why or how... The 1850s is a time of discovery and London is ablaze with the latest scientific theories and debates, especially when a spectacular new exhibition of dinosaur sculptures opens at the Crystal Palace. Mary, with a sharp mind and a sharper tongue, is keen to make her name in this world of science, alongside her geologist husband Henry, but without wealth and connections, their options are limited. But when Mary discovers some old family papers that allude to the shocking truth behind her great-uncle's past, she thinks she may have found the key to securing their future... Their quest takes them to the wilds of Scotland, to Henry's intriguing but reclusive sister Maisie, and to a deadly chase with a rival who is out to steal their secret. Our Hideous Progeny is a sumptuous tale of ambition and obsession, of forbidden love and sabotage; an adventure story that blends classic, immersive storytelling with contemporary themes.

'I hate murders and I hate murderers, but I must admit that the discovery of a bearded corpse would give a fillip to my jaded mind.' Vivian Lestrange - celebrated author of the popular mystery novel The Charterhouse Case and total recluse - has apparently dropped off the face of the Earth. Reported missing by his secretary Eleanor, whom Inspector Bond suspects to be the author herself, it appears that crime and murder is afoot when Lestrange's housekeeper is also found to have disappeared. Bond and Warner of Scotland Yard set to work to investigate a murder with no body and a potentially fictional victim, as E C R Lorac spins a twisting tale full of wry humour and red herrings, poking some fun at her contemporary reviewers who long suspected the Lorac pseudonym to belong to a man (since a woman could apparently not have written mysteries the way that she did). Incredibly rare today, this mystery returns to print for the first time since 1935.

A shocking crime A mansion filled with suspects Ruth Van Rydock can't shake the feeling that something terrible is going to happen to her sister at Stonygates house. Her old school friend Jane Marple decides it's time to pay a visit. But this grand Victorian mansion isn't just a family home - it's also a correctional facility for wayward young men. And when something terrible does indeed happen, Miss Marple must face her most eccentric cast of suspects yet. Never underestimate Miss Marple 'If a genius is someone who leaves the field they work in totally different from how they found it, then we should certainly remember Agatha Christie as a genius.' Stephen Fry 'No one on either side of the Atlantic does it better.' New York Times

The world's greatest detective, Hercule Poirot-legendary star of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile-returns to solve a fiendish new mystery. Hercule Poirot is travelling by luxury passenger coach from London to the exclusive Kingfisher Hill estate, where Richard Devonport has summoned him to prove that his fiancee, Helen, is innocent of the murder of his brother, Frank. But there is a strange condition attached to this request: Poirot must conceal his true reason for being there. The coach is forced to stop when a distressed woman demands to get off, insisting that if she stays in her seat, she will be murdered. Although the rest of the journey passes without anyone being harmed, Poirot's curiosity is aroused, and his fears are later confirmed when a body is discovered with a macabre note attached... Could this new murder and the peculiar incident on the coach be clues to solving the mystery of who killed Frank Devonport? And if Helen is innocent, can Poirot find the true culprit in time to save her from the gallows?

HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics.

'Sherlock Holmes was transformed when he was hot upon such a scent as this. Men who had only known the quiet thinker and logician of Baker Street would have failed to recognize him. His face flushed and darkened. His brows were drawn into two hard black lines, while his eyes shone out from beneath them with a steely glitter.'

Set against the foggy, mysterious backdrops of London and the English countryside, these are the first twelve stories ever published to feature the infamous Detective Sherlock Holmes and his side kick Doctor Watson. They first appeared as stories in the Strand Magazine and feature some of his most famous and enjoyable cases, including 'A Scandal in Bohemia', 'The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle' and 'The Red-headed League'.

Introduction and Notes by John S. Whitley, University of Sussex. Wuthering Heights is a wild, passionate story of the intense and almost demonic love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, a foundling adopted by Catherine's father. After Mr Earnshaw's death, Heathcliff is bullied and humiliated by Catherine's brother Hindley and wrongly believing that his love for Catherine is not reciprocated, leaves Wuthering Heights, only to return years later as a wealthy and polished man. He proceeds to exact a terrible revenge for his former miseries. The action of the story is chaotic and unremittingly violent, but the accomplished handling of a complex structure, the evocative descriptions of the lonely moorland setting and the poetic grandeur of vision combine to make this unique novel a masterpiece of English literature.

ONE MAN - ONE PLANET - ONE CHANCE 2557 Humans have been banished from Earth. Forced to live in huge space colonies close to the moon. Earth has become Heaven. The course of mankind has been set towards colonising the universe. The Pax Humana is in full effect. Giant corporations overseen by The Powers control every human necessity from birth until death, those that fail to adhere to the system are summarily executed. Genesis is the new beginning...Xavier Miro is a space rigger, graffiti artist and dissident. A series of dreams leads to an adventure where he will meet Moon Dudes, Shamanic Space Pirates, Galactic Ravers, Zugbots and fall foul of the sinister Shadows. And where he will not only find out the answers to why mankind was expelled from Earth, but why he is the one person that can save humanity.

Two modern classics in one volume. George Orwell is one of the finest and most influential writers of the twentieth century. Here in one volume, are two of his best-known works of electrifying political fiction, 1984 and Animal Farm. Winston Smith rewrites history. It's his job. Hidden away in the Ministry of Truth, he helps the Party and the omnipresent Big Brother control the people of Oceania. But a seed of rebellion has begun to grow in Winston's heart - one that could have devastating consequences. The animals of Manor Farm have tired of Farmer Jones. When the boar, Old Major, shares his revolutionary plans, the animals are convinced they can thrive on their own. But as the pigs vie for power, they begin to bear an uncanny resemblance to the very tyrants they had overthrown ... Captivating readers since the mid-twentieth century, the enduring popularity of 1984 and Animal Farm are testament to Orwell's powerful, prophetic prose.

Wuthering Heights is a wild, passionate story of the intense and almost demonic love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, a foundling adopted by Catherine's father. After Mr Earnshaw's death, Heathcliff is bullied and humiliated by Catherine's brother Hindley and wrongly believing that his love for Catherine is not reciprocated, leaves Wuthering Heights, only to return years later as a wealthy and polished man. He proceeds to exact a terrible revenge for his former miseries. The action of the story is chaotic and unremittingly violent, but the accomplished handling of a complex structure, the evocative descriptions of the lonely moorland setting and the poetic grandeur of vision combine to make this unique novel a masterpiece of English literature.