The Angel

Thorne, Guy, 1875-1923Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.9

Word count: 482K words
Chapters: 49

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Angel by Guy ThorneAuthor: Thorne, Guy, 1875-1923,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Aug 24, 2012

Editor's review

The Angel is a novel by the English author Guy Thorne, classified under English literature. Thorne was active in the early twentieth century, and his works often carry the narrative tension of popular fiction; this book is closer to a plot-driven English novel than to a fairy tale or allegory. As a public-domain eBook from Project Gutenberg, its reading value lies mainly in two things: first, it lets readers encounter the language and narrative techniques of early twentieth-century English popular fiction; second, as a free text it is convenient for extensive reading or for comparative reading within the context of literary history. Note that public-domain eBooks usually lack modern editorial introductions and annotations, so readers bear the cost of understanding the background themselves. This book suits readers already accustomed to reading English novels in the original, who can treat it as a light literary ramble rather than expect a classic with profound themes or intricate structure. When reading, paying attention to character dialogue and scene progression will make it easier to get into than scrutinizing word by word.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers of English originals who enjoy early twentieth-century British fiction
Learners who need public-domain English novels for extensive reading practice
Readers interested in the narrative techniques of popular literature
Self-learners who want to expand their English literature reading

Not a good fit for

Readers with limited English reading experience who need annotations
Readers expecting a contemporary pace or strong suspenseful twists
Those who only want classics and have limited interest in popular fiction

Reading tips

Read the first two chapters first to gauge the narrative pace; if it feels slow, switch to a fixed twenty pages a day to keep moving.
Jot down character relationships and key scenes as you read to help follow the plot; no need to look up every word.
After finishing, write the main storyline in three to five sentences to check whether you have grasped the main plot.
If using it for language learning, choose passages with more dialogue and read them aloud to feel the spoken English of that era.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is The Angel a religious novel?

The available information only confirms that it is a novel in the English literature category; the word "Angel" in the title should not be directly equated with a religious theme. Readers are best off approaching it as an ordinary novel and judging the subject from the text itself, rather than assuming it tells a religious story.

Will it be hard to read without an introduction or annotations?

That depends on the reader's English reading experience. The Project Gutenberg version is primarily the original text and provides no modern annotations. If you can normally read English novels, you can usually keep going by relying on context; if you have less reading experience, it is advisable to use a dictionary or read alongside an edition with an introduction.

Is this book suitable as English learning material?

It can serve as extensive reading material, but it is not suitable for complete beginners. Its language belongs to the style of early twentieth-century English fiction, and its sentence patterns and vocabulary are distant from contemporary English. It is fairly suitable for people with some reading foundation to practice long-form reading and following the plot; beginners may easily give up because of unfamiliar words and the gap in background.

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About the author

Thorne, Guy, 1875-1923 Author

Guy Thorne (1875–1923) was an English novelist active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Public information about his life is limited, and many biographical details remain unclear. Seventeen of his works are held in the collection, spanning suspense, mystery, thriller, and inspirational coming-of-age fiction. His representative novel When It Was Dark: The Story of a Great Conspiracy builds its mystery around religious and social crisis, while The City in the Clouds, House of Torment, The Soul Stealer, The Angel, A Butterfly on the Wheel, Chance in Chains: A Story of Monte Carlo, and The Air Pirate often involve mysterious events, criminal conspiracies, and adventure. His writing emphasizes suspense and atmosphere, with tightly plotted narratives in which characters face moral and fatal tests; some works also carry an inspirational, growth-oriented tone, offering a glimpse of the popular fiction tastes of his time.