The Light That Lures

Percy James BrebnerProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 468K words
Chapters: 47

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 Light That Lures by Percy James BrebnerAuthor: Brebner, Percy James, 1864-1922,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Aug 28, 2004

Editor's review

This is an English novel from the Project Gutenberg public-domain library. Its author, Percy James Brebner, was active from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century, and his works tend toward popular narrative. The book appears in the original English and is freely available, making it suitable as introductory or supplementary reading in English literature. Its value lies mainly in its openness and accessibility: readers may download and quote it freely, using it for language study, plot analysis, or an acquaintance with the narrative style of popular fiction of the period. Readers should not expect deep literary experimentation or complex structure; it works best as a readable English book to pick up in spare moments such as a commute or before bed. Since the project page offers limited description of the content, readers are advised to sample the opening chapters first and judge whether the narrative pace and vocabulary suit their taste before deciding on close or extensive reading. For readers studying the PR (English literature) classification, the book can also serve as a bibliographic sample.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English learners who want to practice reading with public-domain novels
Teachers who need free English texts for classroom extensive reading
General readers interested in popular fiction of the early twentieth century
Enthusiasts looking to expand their sample of English literature titles

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a Chinese translation or bilingual annotated edition
Researchers who need systematic literary-historical introductions and scholarly notes
Genre-fiction readers who prefer fast-paced contemporary suspense structures

Reading tips

Read the first three chapters, note the character relationships on one page, then decide whether to continue.
When you meet an unfamiliar word, guess its meaning from context first and look up words only after finishing the chapter.
Pair the text with an audiobook or text-to-speech software to ease the burden of long English sentences.
Read a fixed two or three chapters each week, and after each session retell the plot in three sentences.

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 book in Chinese or English?

The book is in the original English and is a Project Gutenberg public-domain e-book; the page lists the language as English. Readers need basic English reading ability, as no Chinese translation or notes are included.

What is Project Gutenberg?

Project Gutenberg is one of the earliest projects providing free e-books. Founded by Michael Hart in 1971, it works to digitize public-domain works for free public reading. This book is released by the project and is a freely accessible electronic text.

There is no synopsis—how do I judge whether it suits me?

Try reading the first one to three chapters and observe the vocabulary difficulty, narrative pace, and density of character introductions. If it reads easily and the plot makes you curious, it is worth continuing; if you need to look up words constantly for several pages, set it aside for now or switch to an extensive-reading approach.

Can it be used as classroom reading material?

Yes. As a public-domain e-book, it is suitable for teachers to use selected passages for extensive reading, vocabulary practice, or narrative analysis. However, the project page provides no teaching notes, so teachers must prepare their own background introduction, vocabulary list, and discussion questions.

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About the author

Percy James Brebner Author · British · 1864–1922

Percy James Brebner (1864–1922) was a British writer of adventure and detective fiction, born in Islington, London, and died in London. He began by publishing historical novels under the pen name Christian Lys, and later turned to detective and adventure subjects. He is best known for the series featuring the professor-detective Christopher Quarles, including The Master Detective: Being Some Further Investigations of Christopher Quarles and Christopher Quarles: College Professor and Master Detective. His works often combine mystery and deduction with exotic adventure, with tight plotting and an emphasis on puzzle construction and the ingenuity of his characters; Princess Maritza, The Light That Lures and The Brown Mask also reflect this style. Five of his works are held in the collection. Public information about his life and writing career is limited, and the available profile can only sketch the general outline of his work.