6 OCTOBER 1888, Page 24

Uncle Pierce. By Charles Blatherwick. (Longmans.)—Mr. Blatherwick has got hold

of a novelty for the main thread of his plot ; but it is scarcely of sufficient importance to warrant the use that is made of it. Most readers will find the denouement of Uncle Pierce a genuine surprise, if the essential of a surprise is to be unexpected. But it is better suited for a magazine story than a novel. Otherwise, the book is written with considerable spirit, and in a style which shows literary skill.