King's Daughters. By M. Bramston. (National Society. ls. 6d.) —Miss
Bramston has made a bold experiment with success. She has found a subject in the troubled period which followed the fall of Jerusalem. Her hero is Gedaliah, the ill-fated ruler who tried to keep together the fragments of Jewish nationality, and her heroines the daughters of King Zedekiah ; but the protagonist in her drama is the Prophet Jeremiah. This is a great venture, and it speaks much for Miss Bramston's judgment and literary skill that she has managed it so well. King's Daughters is an excellent piece of work.—From the same publishers we have received 'Twist Old and New, by Mary. H. Debenham (2s. ad.), a picturesque tale of the second half of the fourteenth century, when the State was troubled by the consequences of the Black Death, and the Church by the movements of Lollardy ; Ups and Downs of Lady Di, by Annette Lyster (2s.), a somewhat complicated story of English life (is not the settlement which the Earl of Wildeshoe causes to be made on his marriage a little beyond the bounds of the probable ?); Elizabeth's Angel, by Dorothea Moore (1s.), a story of the days of the Commonwealth ; and The Cottage on. the Downs, and other Stories, by Katherine E. Vernham (1s. 6d.)—The Namesake of the King. By A. M. Barham. (S.P.C.K. ls. 6d.)—The King is Richard I., and the actors in the drama are various characters which Miss Barham depicts with creditable care.
The Story of Dorothy, by L. E. Tiddeman (same publishers, 2s.), is the story of a misunderstanding. Dorothy thinks that her grandfather is a miser. He is really an affectionate old man whose brain has been somewhat touched by trouble.—Ice- gripped, by W. Charles Metcalfe (same publishers, 2s. 6d.), begins dramatically enough with the sweeping overboard of three lads from the deck of the ` Dolphin.' The three reach an " ice-island," and then in the nick of time appears the ` Tomboy' of Boston, which is to be the principal agent in the story. Mr. Metcalfe is familiar with his subject, and makes a brisk tale out of it.— The Ordeal of Susannah, Vantham, by Emily P. Finnemore (same publishers, 3s. 6d.), is an interesting story of domestic life, with complications from many affairs which have various tragical results. Worked in with this is a tale of true love. The dialogue is given in vigorous idiomatic English. Ronald the Moor Ranger, by R. Stead (same publishers, 2s. 6d.), takes us to the country and pictures for us, among other lively scenes, a vigorous right-of-way battle.—Jim's Sister, by Florence E. Dugdale (same publishers, ls. 6d.), is a simple and effective story of trouble brought about by a false accusation, trouble bravely borne, and so leading on to a happy end.
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