'What a splendid squire he is, ' said Willy, as he and Jeremy walked home. 'One of the best' agreed Jeremy. 'And what a surprise his news will be to the village', said Willy. 'I don't know how we'll keep the secret till tomorrow'. Christmas time is fast approaching in Foxwood Village and Harvey Mouse, Rue Rabbit and Willy Hedgehog find themselves in store for some seasonal surprises. There's a new squire at the Old Manor House and a new arrival in the form of the little orphan, Jeremy Badger. Christmas mystery soon turns to merriment as the grand tradition of the Christmas Eve party at the manor is revived and the inhabitants of Foxwood, old and new, celebrate in style.
An invitation to take lunch at the Great Western Hotel at Paddington station leads Sherlock Holmes into a baffling mystery. Who is it that is watching every move made by popular journalist, Farringdon Blake, and why? When the trail goes cold in London, Holmes and his friend, Dr Watson, must travel down to Foxwood Grange, Blake's home in rural Oxfordshire, to seek a solution to the mystery there. But Foxwood Grange, a 300-year-old Elizabethan mansion, is a house with a chequered past and holds mysteries of its own. In this superb evocation of both the spirit and the style of Conan Doyle's earlier Sherlock Holmes stories, Denis O. Smith, acclaimed author of numerous Sherlock Holmes short story collections, here presents the great detective on a larger stage, in a gripping mystery which builds remorselessly to a thrilling and dramatic climax.
Two completely different hauntings, investigated at different times, will push a group of investigators beyond their breaking point. The infamous Reindeer Manor is mired in unsolved crimes. Running from the property won "t solve your problems, it will magnify them. Everyone who has visited Foxwood has either been killed or irreversibly changed. Just because the investigation is finished, doesn "t mean the ghosts are.
Seventy-five years after the publication of Orwell’s satirical fable, it’s story time again! So, welcome to the Free World where everyone will live happily ever after… right? SYNOPSIS A team of future scientists is determined to find out what caused a previous mass extinction of species when they discover evidence of mysterious creatures that may provide an answer to what caused the event. The ancient finds include several scriptures, among them a story called Animal Farm which tells the tale of a farm on which animals decide to overthrow their evil human master but soon after doing so, the farm’s pigs take over and turn malignant, too. This story is continued in another scripture titled Animal Farming which is told from the perspective of the donkey Benjamin, who escapes the farm in fear of persecution by the pigs. At first, Benjamin is impressed by the high living standards on his new host farm but soon starts developing ethical concerns when a huge hen cage is installed. Benjamin meets a series of characters representing renowned Western philosophers who have shaped the basis of today’s moral justification for intensive animal farming methods. From Aristotle to Kant, they all try their best to convince Benjamin of its legitimacy – and not without success! It is only after a personal tragedy that Benjamin realises he should have listened to his gut feeling. Besides challenging the popular reasoning in favour of intensive farming methods, A Donkey’s Diary explores arguments concerning animal welfare, animal rights, and environmental protection in the context of the ongoing climate crisis and mass extinction event. In a sarcastic tone, the story questions the popular assumption that humans are not to be considered animals due to their allegedly superior intellect. In doing so, the donkey Benjamin reveals what truly lies beneath their apparent need for eternal growth despite its fatal consequences that currently threaten to destroy their own livelihoods. Similar to its prequel, A Donkey’s Diary is a satirical fable about humans and other animals. The story represents how food production – and with it the human-animal relationship – has changed over the course of the past three Industrial Revolutions and highlights which ancient arguments were (and still are) used to justify intensive farming practices. It invites the reader to ponder animals, food, money, work, intelligence and much more.
