At Home With The Jardines by Lilian Bell 1906 Women's Novel

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Title: At Home With The Jardines

Author: Lilian Bell

Storyline: "Cast iron angel" Irish serving woman Mary jovially runs the lives of two New York society newlyweds. For a domestic sit com analogue think of the 1960s vintage TV show housekeeper "Mabel."

Copyright: 1902

Publication: 1906

Publisher: A. Wessels Company, New York

Format: Blue cloth-bound hardcover with embossed decoration

Page Count: 322

Author Biography:

Bell, Lillian (Mrs Bogue) (b.1867-d.1929) Published her first novel at age 26. She wrote mostly from her experience and her travels as the wife of upper-crust Arthur Hoyt Bogue of Chicago. Her father, Maj. William W. Bell, fought in the Civil War, as did did her grandfather, Gen. Joseph Warren Bell  (a Southerner, who sold and freed his slaves before the war, brought his family North, and organized the 13th Illinois Cavalry). Her great - great - grandfather, Captain Thomas Bell, served Virginia in the American Revolution. Lilian Bell was born in Chicago, but she was brought up in Atlanta.

Works include: The Love Affairs of an Old Maid (1893); Hope Loring; A Little Sister to the Wilderness (1895); The Under Side of Things; From a Girl's Point of View (1897); The Expatriates (1900); Abroad with the Jimmies (1900); At Home With The Jardines (1902); As Seen By Me; Carolina Lee (1907)

The House of a Thousand Candles by Meredith Nicholson Romantic Mystery

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Title: The House of a Thousand Candles

Author: Meredith Nicholson

Illustrator: Howard Chandler Christy

Storyline: This melodramatic novel has it all - romance and adventure, love and valor, secret passages and tunnels, and hidden treasure. The hero must live an entire year in an isolated house if he is to inherit it from his grandfather. Should he fail, he'll lose the house to a young woman whom the will forbids him to marry. The answer to the dilemma is a secret to be discovered.

Copyright: 1905

Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap, New York

Format: Blue cloth-bound hardcover with applied plate, black lettering to spine

Page Count: 382

A Spinner In The Sun by Myrtle Reed 1906 Women's Mystery Novel

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Title: A Spinner In The Sun

Author: Myrtle Reed

Storyline: Miss Evelina Grey returns alone to her abandoned cottage and dormant garden after 25 years. What tragedy occurred to turn her hair white in one night? Who caused the fire that ruined her beauty and forced her to wear a veil? Why was she in the hospital all that time? There are many mysteries to be unraveled in the story of this enigmatic and interesting woman.

Copyright: 1906

Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap, New York

Format: Blue cloth-bound hardcover with applied decorative plate to front cover

Page Count: 393

Author Biography:

Reed, Myrtle (b.1874–d.1911) American, wrote best selling novels, poetry, and cookbooks (as Olive Green). Daughter of a preacher and an oriental scholar. Born and died in Chicago, Illinois, and was married to her high school pen-pal. Was also known as a philanthropist who ordered her estate divided among her favorite charities after her tragic death by an intentional overdose of sleeping powder.

Works include: Love Letters of a Musician (1899); Later Love Letters of a Musician (1900); The Spinster Book (1901); Lavender and Old Lace (1902); The Shadow of Victory (1903); Pickaback Songs (1903); The Book of Clever Beasts (1904); The Master's Violin (1904); What to Have for Breakfast (1905); At the Sign of the Jack o' Lantern (1905) - made into a silent film directed by Lloyd Ingraham in 1922; A Spinner in the Sun (1906); Love Affairs of Literary Men (1907); One Thousand Simple Soups (1907); How to Cook Fish (1908); Flowers of the Dusk (1908) - made into a silent film directed by John H. Collins in 1918; One Thousand Salads (1909); Old Rose and Silver (1909); Master of the Vineyard (1910); Sonnets to a Lover (1910); Everyday Desserts (1911); A Weaver of Dreams (1911); The White Shield, a collection of short sketches by Myrtle Reed (1912); Threads of Gray and Gold (1913); Happy Women (1913)