The House of Lynch. By Leonard Merrick. (Hodder and Stoughton.
6s.)—In The House of Lynch Mr. Merrick tells how the daughter of an American millionaire marries a man whose distaste of the manner in which his father-in-law's fortune was acquired is so great that he refuses to benefit by a penny of the money. The story, in spite of the serious nature of the theme, tells with a good deal of humour and considerable knowledge of human nature the struggle with unaccustomed poverty which is endured by the unfortunate Betty Keith, née Lynch. The idea is original, and the treatment extremely clever. When we consider the stream of novels of doubtful taste and morality, to which the world has unfortunately become well accustomed, The House of Lynch stands out as quite free from any touch of unpleasantness. Yet it is far from being a "bread-and-butter story," and repre- sents life as it is. It is not a great work of art, but Mr. Merrick may be congratulated on having produced a book which is thoroughly entertaining, while at the same time depicting every- day life with homely fidelity.
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