7 FEBRUARY 1914, Page 27

READABLE NOVELS.—Subsoil. By O. Marriott. (Hurst and Blackett. 6s.)—A great

deal of clever word.spinning which probes arts, crafts, and temperaments. The plot is exasperating, but the characters do carry interest as well as the subjects.—Gold Lace. By E. C. Mayne. (Chapman and Hall. 68.)—Though the superficial theme is the vulgar one of girls flirting with officers, the story is mere than redeemed by the serious treatment and by some wholesome wisdom.—The Unforgiving Minute. By Irene Burn. (T. Fisher Unpin. 6a.) —A. clever picture of Anglo-Indian life up-to-date. The story is rather thin, and is eked out by incidents excellently illustrative, if not strictly pertinent to the plot.