The Breaking Point

Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 620K words
Chapters: 63

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 Breaking Point by Mary Roberts RinehartAuthor: Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jan 1, 1999

Editor's review

The Breaking Point comes from the American popular novelist Mary Roberts Rinehart, whose works often weave domestic routine with suspenseful tension. The book centers on a seemingly calm family whose cracks gradually show under pressure; its focus is not on bloody crime but on psychology and shifting relationships. Rinehart's narration excels at accumulating unease from trivial details, letting readers sense something wrong in ordinary conversation—a "domestic suspense" approach that clearly influenced later popular suspense writing. The book's value lies in showing the narrative craft of early American bestselling popular fiction: brisk pacing, strong chapter endings, clear character motivation. It suits readers who like slow-burn suspense and are willing to follow characters' emotions, and serves as a sample of early twentieth-century American popular literature. A caveat: the work bears clear marks of its era, and some gender attitudes and domestic descriptions should be viewed in historical context.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who like slow-burn domestic suspense and value character psychology
Literature lovers who want to understand early twentieth-century American popular fiction
Readers who prefer short chapters, steady pacing, and分段 reading
Researchers interested in the history of women popular novelists

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking strong reasoning, tight trickery, or classic puzzle plotting
Readers sensitive to old-era portrayals of gender attitudes
Readers used to contemporary high-stimulus suspense who lack patience

Reading tips

Proceed chapter by chapter, noting detail and setup rather than rushing to find the culprit.
Watch changes in relationships as you read; the suspense comes largely from the psychological level.
Compare with other Rinehart works to observe her narrative formulas.
If the English is hard, find a Chinese translation first to get familiar with the plot, then read the original.

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 this a mystery or a domestic novel?

It is closer to a domestic novel with suspenseful tension. Sources do not provide detailed plot, but given Rinehart's characteristic approach, the focus is on relationships and psychological pressure rather than tight puzzle plotting. Readers expecting a puzzle may find the pace slow.

What kind of writer is Rinehart?

Sources show she was an American writer from 1876 to 1958, classified under American literature. She is known for popular suspense and domestic subjects and was one of the leading American bestselling novelists of the early twentieth century. This book is an entry point to her narrative style.

What is the reading experience of the public-domain ebook like?

The book comes from Project Gutenberg and is a free public-domain ebook in English. The layout is mainly plain text, suitable for分段 reading on an e-reader or phone; if you need notes or an introduction, you will have to supply background material yourself.

Comments

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About the author

Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958 Author

Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876–1958) was an American author known for her detective fiction and humorous sketches. The library holds 29 of her works, including The Circular Staircase, The Man in Lower Ten, A Poor Wise Man, The After House, Tish: The Chronicle of Her Escapades and Excursions, Kings, Queens and Pawns: An American Woman at the Front, Tenting To-night, and The Confession. Her detective novels often unfold through female narrators and build suspense from everyday details, creating tension without losing a sense of humor; they have influenced later mystery and detective writing. Public information is limited, so no biographical details are conjectured here, and readers may come to know her narrative style and themes through the works listed above.