A Duel (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. An Edwardian Psychological Suspense Novella of Honor, Pride, Masculinity, and Moral AmbiguityBy Richard Marsh
Length10h 27m
About this audiobook
Richard Marsh's *A Duel* is a compact Victorian tale of conflict in which the outward ritual of combat becomes a test of character, reputation, and moral authority. Marsh uses the conventions of sensation fiction—secrecy, social peril, reversals, and mounting suspense—to examine how apparently civilized codes can conceal fear, vanity, and coercion. The book's interest lies not merely in the prospect of physical confrontation, but in the psychological and social pressures that make the duel possible. Its dramatic pacing, emphatic contrasts, and atmosphere of unease place it within the late-nineteenth-century tradition that links the drawing-room thriller to the darker explorations of identity and motive associated with fin-de-siècle popular literature. Marsh, the pen name of Richard Bernard Heldmann, was a prolific writer whose fiction repeatedly probed the instability beneath respectable Victorian life. Best known for *The Beetle*, he cultivated a style that combines readable melodrama with apprehension about social performance, masculine authority, and hidden impulses. His experience writing sensation novels, detective narratives, and supernatural fiction helps explain the energetic construction of *A Duel*: the book treats a conventional social institution as a stage on which private obsessions and public honor collide. Readers interested in Victorian culture, the literature of suspense, or the changing meanings of honor will find *A Duel* especially rewarding. It offers both the immediate pleasures of an expertly managed dramatic narrative and a revealing study of the anxieties embedded in late-Victorian respectability. The book is a valuable introduction to Marsh's distinctive imaginative world and to the broader cultural tensions of its period.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
GenreMystery and Thriller
Length10 hrs 27 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateSep 15, 2022
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1A Duel (Annotated)
26THE GIRL AT THE DOOR
2Introduction
27CHAPTER XI
3Synopsis
28HOT WATER
4Historical Context
29CHAPTER XII
5BOOK I
30SIGNING THE WILL
Show all chaptersShow less
6WIFE
31CHAPTER XIII
7CHAPTER I
32THE ENCOUNTER IN THE WOOD
8THE END OF THE HONEYMOON
33CHAPTER XIV
9CHAPTER II
34IN CUTHBERT GRAHAME'S ROOM
10AN OFFER OF MARRIAGE
35BOOK II
11CHAPTER III
36THE WIDOW
12WHOM GOD HATH JOINED
37CHAPTER XV
13CHAPTER IV
38"THE GORDIAN KNOT"
14A SECOND HONEYMOON
39CHAPTER XVI
15CHAPTER V
40MARGARET IS PUZZLED
16A CONVERSATION WITH THE DOCTOR
41CHAPTER XVII
17CHAPTER VI
42AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR
18HUSBAND AND WIFE
43CHAPTER XVIII
19CHAPTER VII
44CRONIES
20A TUG OF WAR
45CHAPTER XIX
21CHAPTER VIII
46IN COUNCIL
22THE MINIATURE
47CHAPTER XX
23CHAPTER IX
48THE IMPENDING SWORD
24THE SLIDING PANEL
49CHAPTER XXI
25CHAPTER X
50OUT OF THE BLUE
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