'Loveliness' is a beautiful and thought-provoking story by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, featuring a young maid waiting for her beloved, Loveliness, to return. As she waits, she reflects on the beauty of nature and the importance of protecting it from harm, including the controversial practice of vivisection. With vivid descriptions and poignant storytelling, this book is a moving call to action for all who cherish the beauty of the natural world.
"The Loveliness of Christ," contains the essay by the title name plus several letters Rutherford wrote. Since his death in 1661, the writings and letters of Rutherford have been an inspiration to many--including the highly esteemed evangelist, Charles Spurgeon. In Spurgeon's words, "when we are dead and gone let the world know that Spurgeon held Rutherford's letters to be the nearest thing to inspiration that can be found in the writings of mere men." Rutherford, like all humans, grappled with sin and faced tribulations. Even in the midst of his own struggles, however, Rutherford became a beacon, revealing the loveliness of Jesus Christ. An old English merchant and contemporary of Rutherford explained the transformative impact of encountering Rutherford this way: "I came to Irvine, and heard a well-favored, proper old man [David Dickson] with a long beard, and that man showed me all my heart. Then I went to St. Andrews, where I heard a sweet, majestic-looking man [Robert Blair], and he showed me the majesty of God. After him I heard a little, fair man [Rutherford], and he showed me the loveliness of Christ." Rutherford's personality was a blend of godliness, humility, and strong emotions, leading to occasional outbursts and challenges in his interactions. Acknowledging his own temperament, he once confessed to David Dickson, "I am made of extremes." Despite bouts of depression, Rutherford's experiences became a divine tool, shaping him into a source of comfort for fellow believers in times of suffering. "The Loveliness of Christ" is a testament to the transformative power of a flawed yet deeply devoted soul. Rutherford's letters not only offer profound insights into the Christian journey but also showcase the loveliness of Christ that transcends human imperfections.
Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home… Ten years ago, at ‘The Brindle Horse’ Hotel, Amarinda Siddaway ran barefoot out of the fog, with a bloody knife in her hand and a children’s rhyme on her lips. Tangled with rumors of lurid scandal, an illicit love affair with a young man a dozen years her junior, and a missing corpse, the mystery of Mrs. Siddaway seemed destined never to be solved. Tried for murder and acquitted, the scarlet woman disappeared from the world just as thoroughly as her alleged victim. But was she truly innocent, or did she get away with murder? Now, a decade later, a very similar crime has been committed, once again at the same hotel. Can it be nothing more than simple coincidence that several characters involved in the first incident are present at the scene of the second? Another woman with a bloody weapon in her hand; another nursery rhyme, and another missing dead man. Some folk might think that old ghosts are to blame. Or is it the ladybirds again? A spinning weathervane on a boathouse roof points in turn to all four directions of the compass. And four letters, sealed with red wax, stamped with the image of a ladybird, are out in the world, linking both crimes with a curious, winding chain. And there is only one man with the patience and wisdom to unwind it. Only one man can connect the clues and stop that weathervane spinning. Detective Inspector Deverell is not fond of coincidences or the supernatural. But whatever is going on at ‘The Brindle Horse’, he’ll get to the bottom of it. Fortunately, he has the eager amateur sleuth and creator of remarkable cakes, Miss Lucy Greenwood, to help him out.
Jane James knows that she must have been born to better things than a dingy bedroom in her Aunt Doreen's house in Norbury and evenings spent eating gala pie and Heinz tinned potato salad in their 'sitting-cum-dining room'. So, armed with her well-thumbed copy of Lady Be Good, she practises her French turns, her killer smile and precisely how much thigh to show when crossing her legs, and dreams of a time when she can be a part of the world she glimpses through the Mayfair windows of the cashmere shop where she works. When she finds a crocodile handbag left in a pub, it leads her to Suzy St John, a girl-about-town with the glamour, the confidence and the irresistible allure that Jane has been practising for so long. Suzy takes Jane under her wing, and Jane becomes Janey, a near carbon-copy of her new best friend and a delighted adventurer in an easy, sleazy, sixties West-End world of part-time modelling and full-time man-trapping. Her new, improved self catwalks confidently through nightclubs, rag trade showrooms and luxury Mayfair flats but Jane finds that she can never quite drown out the carping voice of her past - or the nagging doubt that there might be slightly more to life than a mutation mink jacket or an engagement ring. When a shocking act of violence threatens to bring Jane's glittering new life crashing down around her she must call on all her powers of reinvention if her dyed-to-match stilettos are to carry her away unscathed.
