Hurricane Island

Watson, H. B. Marriott (Henry Brereton Marriott),Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.7

Word count: 502K words
Chapters: 51

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.Hurricane Island by H. B. Marriott WatsonAuthor: Watson, H. B. Marriott (Henry Brereton Marriott), 1863-1921,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Mar 22, 2009

Editor's review

Hurricane Island is an old-fashioned English novel of adventure and suspense by H. B. Marriott Watson. Its readability comes mainly from atmosphere and plotting: a lonely island, a storm, and the tests and secrets among the characters make for a classic piece of old popular storytelling. As a public-domain ebook, it is useful for observing the pacing and language habits of early twentieth-century English popular fiction, and for seeing how "island narrative" builds tension within a confined space. A caveat: the language and some of the attitudes bear the marks of their time, and the plot unfolds differently from contemporary suspense novels; readers expecting fast-paced twists may find the setup drawn out. Overall, it suits casual literary reading or as a supplementary sample of the history of English popular fiction rather than as serious literature in pursuit of deep themes.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-language readers who enjoy old-fashioned adventure and suspense
Readers curious about the style of early twentieth-century English popular fiction
Readers comfortable in English who prefer island narratives
Readers who need public-domain English texts for casual reading

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting contemporary fast-paced suspense and twists
Beginners whose English reading is not yet fluent and who need annotations
Readers sensitive to old-fashioned pacing and period attitudes

Reading tips

Read the first few chapters to get a feel for the language's rhythm, then decide whether to follow the characters' secrets along the suspense thread.
Treat the island setting as a reading clue and notice how changes of scene build tension.
If English reading is hard going, read a plot summary first and then return to key dialogue to reduce frustration.
If reading out of interest in literary history, jot down the common tropes of old popular narrative as you go.

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 typical suspense novel?

It is closer to an old-fashioned adventure novel with suspense elements. The island and the storm provide a tense backdrop, and the characters' secrets drive the plot, but the pacing and the way revelations are handled differ from contemporary suspense fiction, with more room given to setup and atmosphere. Readers who come to it expecting old popular narrative will find it easier to get into.

Can I read this if my English is average?

You can try, but it takes some stamina. The language carries the habitual expressions of early twentieth-century English popular fiction, and some sentence patterns and word choices are distant from contemporary English. Readers with average English can first use a plot summary to grasp the main line, then read in sections, slowing down when dialogue is dense.

Is this book suitable as English-learning material?

It can serve as extensive reading material, but not as a systematic textbook. Its value lies in exposing readers to old-fashioned English narrative and dialogue style, while the plot provides motivation to keep reading. For study, pair it with modern annotations or an introduction, and focus on expressions in scene description and character dialogue rather than reading every sentence closely.

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About the author

Watson, H. B. Marriott (Henry Brereton Marriott), Author · British · 1863–1921

H. B. Marriott Watson (full name Henry Brereton Marriott Watson, 1863–1921) was a British novelist whose career spanned the late Victorian and Edwardian periods, during which he published a number of popular novels. Two of his works are held in this collection, The High Toby and Hurricane Island; their titles suggest adventure and romance themes, in keeping with the popular reading tastes of his time. Public information about his life is limited, and details of his education, career and writing remain difficult to establish; the existing profile describes him simply as a novelist and outlines the period in which he was active. His works nonetheless offer a concrete example for observing the character of British popular fiction in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.