24 MARCH 1888, Page 22

A Lion among the Ladies. By. Philip Gaskell. 3 vols.

(F. V. White and Co.)—This is a " military " story, and as inane as most sue& stories are when they have to do with soldiers in times of peace. As usual, there is scarcely a syllable to indicate any interest in their profession as felt by the various persons who appear in it. The Soudan Campaign is used to kill off an interesting ne'er-do-weel, who could not be conveniently disposed of ; all the rest of the volume is occupied with love-making of one kind or another. Lady Gregorie wrote two foolish love-letters when she was a girl to a worthless adventurer, and she wants to get them back. What serious interest the story has is centred in that fact. It is written in English which it would be a compliment to call "indifferent."