Books with author Mary. Johnston

Mary Johnston (1870-1936) was an American novelist and women's rights advocate. Johnston wrote historical books and novels that often combined romance with history. Her first book Prisoners of Hope (1898) dealt with colonial times in Virginia as did her second novel To Have and to Hold (1900) and 1904's Sir Mortimer. The Goddess of Reason (1907) uses the theme of the French Revolution and in Lewis Rand (1908), the author portrayed political life at the dawn of the 19th century. To Have and to Hold was serialised in The Atlantic Monthly in 1899 and published in 1900 by Houghton Mifflin. The book proved enormously popular and according to the New York Times was the bestselling novel in the United States in 1900. Johnston's next work titled Audrey was the 5th bestselling book in the U.S. in 1902, as was Sir Mortimer in 1904. Beyond her native America, Johnston's novels were also very popular in Canada and in England. Other works include The Long Roll (1911), Cease Firing (1912), Hagar (1913), The Witch (1914), The Wanderers (1917), and Foes (1918).

Another of Mary Johnston's dazzling novels of fighting, romance, and adventure-this time on the Spanish Main! Sir Mortimer Ferne is a privateer-a legalized pirate-licensed by Queen Elizabeth I to prey on enemy ships. All is going well until Sir Mortimer becomes the victim of an ingenious, but malicious, trick in which he is made out to be a traitor. As a result, he loses everything-his status in court, his friends, his fortune, and worst of all, his honor. This launches him on a quest to gain it all back; but there are forces that do not want him to succeed in that task. In the process of Sir Mortimer's struggle, we become witnesses to Sir Francis Drake's capture of Cartagena, and Robert Dudley's expedition to Flushing, both in 1585. It is a story of English sea-dogs on the Spanish Main; but it is done with Mary Johnston's incredible eye for historical detail, and her gift for telling a rollicking good tale. Sir Mortimer was Johnston's third book to "go gold." It was the fifth bestselling book of 1905, following the previous successes of Audrey (No. 5 in 1902) and To Have and to Hold (No. 1 in 1900).

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

Mary Johnston was the cousin of Confederate General Joseph Johnston. She used her knowledge of his actions along with the diaries of men and women who witnessed the events of the early Civil War to write her books. Her works combine fact with fiction to create historical novels. Prisoners of Hope is a story of colonial Virginia when the colony was seething with disaffection caused by the sending of rebels to the plantations. An excerpt from the beginning reads, "The object of her attention was a large sloop that had left the bay and was sailing up a wide inlet or creek that pierced the land, cork-screw fashion, until it vanished from sight amidst innumerable green marshes. The channel, indicated by a deeper blue in the midst of an expanse of shoal water, was narrow, and wound like a gleaming snake in and out among the interminable succession of marsh islets. The vessel, following its curves, tacked continually, its great sail intensely white against the blue of inlet, bay and sky, and the shadeless green of the marshes, zigzagging from side to side with provoking leisureliness. The girl who had spoken watched it eagerly, a color in her cheeks, and one little foot in its square-toed, rosetted shoe tapping impatiently upon the floor of the wide porch in which she stood."

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.