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Southsea Stories and Beyond, the Complete Uncollected Stories of Arthur Conan Doyle.(Note: The MUCH RARER AND COLLECTIBLE BLUE VERSION of this book in hardback is ONLY available at a special price of £25 post-free in the UK from the publisher at www.lifeisamazing.co.uk. Amazon is unable to provide this rare blue edition)While working as a GP in Portsmouth's seaside resort of Southsea between 1882 and 1890, young Arthur Conan Doyle produced short stories and novels at an astonishing rate. Some of his anonymously-published tales were forgotten, only to be rediscovered around a century later in 1983. They are included here, along with more recent discoveries collected in book form for the very first time.Conan Doyle wrote comedies, tragedies, horror, supernatural and earthbound mysteries, unlikely adventures from the outposts of Empire and much more besides. All became part of his story-telling palette.In these pages you will meet a military medic, a super-shrewd observer of people, a terrified occupant of a lonely country house, a diamond thief, a masked visitor and many other characters imagined by Conan Doyle as he inched ever-closer to his greatest creation: Sherlock Holmes.While many associate Holmes with London, this book reveals how the detective was initially conceived in Southsea - and why Portsmouth will forever be "Sherlock's home".

First century Phoenicia, land of purple. A successful businesswoman abandons the dye trade and her glamorous lifestyle to walk with madmen, artists, a magus' apprentice, devotees and thieves as she follows a charismatic healer to Jerusalem. She can give up her jewelry and towering hairdo but can she wash clean the secret stain of her previous career as a dancer in the temple of Venus? The answer comes with an indelible gift that will leave its mark on her and her friends forever... Though some say St Veronica may not really have existed, these pages tell her surprising and inspiring tale of real transformation. The True Picture is an intoxicating mix of historical fact with colourful fiction.

The classic story of a naive Englishwoman's fall at the hands of an unscrupulous British army officer, who takes her to the United States and abandons her there. A cautionary tale, the book become the first ever bestseller in the continent of America.

Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.When in 1887 Beeton's Christmas Annual included a story about a brilliant consulting detective written by an obscure doctor living in Southsea, Portsmouth, nobody could have predicted the massive influence Sherlock Holmes would have on the world of detective fiction. Perhaps that's why the cheap book bound in fragile paper wraps was discarded by so many Victorian households after the Christmas season was over. Famously, there are just 34 copies still in existence, of which 11 are complete, making the prospect of owning an original virtually impossible for the Sherlock Holmes collector. Using the original artwork, this unlimited edition contains all the pages of the original edition. Including the original adverts and the accompanying works, this book is a fascinating historical document - and an affordable choice for the lover of all things Sherlock.

Pompey writes features the very best content from Star & Crescent, Portsmouth's only independent, non-commercial news, culture and commentary website, plus brand new material never before published. Since 2015, S&C has earned accolades for its investigations into local culture, media, ecology, housing, healthcare, education and gender issues. It has also been a platform for the most talented Portsmouth-based poets, fiction writers, memoirists, satirists and visual artists.S&C has always been a mouthpiece for voices that are not otherwise heard in the mainstream media. Pompey Writes is no exception and boasts work by representatives of overlooked and marginalised groups, including migrants, the homeless, members of ethnic minorities and working-class women.Amongst the book more than sixty contributors are Ted Hughes Prize-winning poest Maggie Sawkins; William Sutton, author of the Campbell Lawless novels; Christine Lord, prolific journalist and activist; Sarah Cheverton (Huffington Post, Women's Views on News, Red Pepper); Tom Sykes (New Statesman, Private Eye, Bradt Travel Guides); and Matt Wingett, publisher, local historian and author of The Snow Witch. Poetry, short fiction, investigative journalism, travel writing, satire, graphic design, photography... it's all here in this extensive, ground-breaking anthology.Edited by Tom Sykes and Sarah Cheverton

111 illustrations - 50 in colour - 3 maps Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.Join local writer Matt Wingett and see Portsmouth through the eyes of writers such as Charles Dickens, Beatrix Potter, P G Wodehouse, H G Wells, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Olivia Manning and even Mahatma Gandhi.From the heights of Portsdown Hill to the crowded streets of Portsea, from the chaos that was Old Portsmouth to the beaches of Southsea and even the skies above, discover just what writers famous and obscure wrote about the town. On the way, you will meet carousing sailors, enterprising bumboat women, obsessive fortune-tellers, fallen women, moral and immoral landladies, treacherous pilots, disapproving generals and many more characters both fictional and historical in this personal and slightly eccentric tour.In this book you will discover -- Which Portsmouth woman wrote America's first ever bestseller- Why St Jago the monkey became famous at The Common Hard- What H G Wells hated about Portsmouth- Where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle first set foot in Southsea- What Lawrence of Arabia was doing in Southsea- Where midshipman Peter Simple was sent for his cocked hatCrammed with 111 illustrations, many in colour. Each location is illustrated with a picture taken from the author's personal collection, and he shares stories, facts, quasi-facts and complete fictions in an exploration of the literary heritage of the town.For anyone interested in Portsmouth, great writing and history, this is the perfect read.

Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.A woman on the run arrives in a British seaside town, a refugee from a horrifying past. Trapped by a freak blizzard, she finds unexpected kindness from the locals - except for one man who seems hellbent on possessing or destroying her. Unable to leave the icebound city, she is drawn into the lives of its people, whose stories force her to face her own cruel past.What is she running from? What dark secret does she carry with her? - And how can she escape it if she won't acknowledge it exists?The Snow Witch is a tale of loss, love, murder, obsession and witchcraft, rich in magical scenes that delight, horrify and intrigue. 'A haunted and haunting book, infused with humanity at its rawest.' - Andy Paciorek, Folk Horror Revival'...weaves folklore and magic in such a natural way, as to make you believe and want magic like this in your everyday life...' - Grainne Rhuad, Subversify.com'Beautifully realised... Wingett places descriptions on the page as an artist adds images to canvas' - Mark Norman. Author and creator of The Folklore Podcast'...loads to love here: the music, the magic, the archetypes, the seriousness of intent... exquisite in philosophy, pitch and pace.' - Dr Alison Habens, Author, Lifestory

Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.A woman on the run arrives in a British seaside town, a refugee from a horrifying past. Trapped by a freak blizzard, she finds unexpected kindness from the locals - but not from all of them - one man seems hellbent on either possessing or destroying her.Unable to leave the icebound city, she is drawn into the lives of its people, who become friends and whose stories force her to face her own cruel past. What is she running from so desperately, what dark secret does she carry with her - and how can she escape from it if she will not acknowledge it exists?The Snow Witch is a tale of loss, love, witchcraft, murder and obsession, rich in magical scenes that will delight, horrify and intrigue.

A novelty book which has a whole series of blank pages - revealing exactly what Southampton people really think is so great about Portsmouth! Great as a gift for a Saints fan, or a wind up for a Pompey-supporting mate.

Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.A novelty book which lists all the "Amazing" things about Southampton, as appreciated by a Portsmouth person. Once you look inside to see the list, you'll find every page is blank except for a few words in which the author struggles to find anything great. A fun stocking filler for the die hard lover of all things Pompey.

Available post-free in the UK from the publisher's website, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk."Why did the man who created Sherlock Holmes believe in ghosts?"From early in his medical career, Arthur Conan Doyle was fascinated by the paranormal. As a young doctor in Southsea, he investigated séances, telepathy and hypnosis and in 1887, the year of his first Sherlock Holmes novel, he became convinced of spirit communication.Even as Holmes's fame grew, Conan Doyle investigated poltergeists, automatic writing and spirit photography. Then, in 1916, as the Great War's death toll mounted, he announced to an astonished his belief in Spiritualism, all the while, continuing to produce stories starring his ultra-rational consulting detective, Sherlock Holmes.In Conan Doyle and the Mysterious World of Light: Trace Conan Doyle's thinking as he grapples with paranormal phenomena and reaches the extraordinary conclusion that they are real. Read his own account of speaking with his dead son, Kingsley, and making physical contact with his manifested spirit. Discover why Conan Doyle was accused of "necromancy" by Press and Church. Find out how H G Wells, George Bernard Shaw and others were drawn into the debate. Follow Conan Doyle's journey to becoming an international missionary and leader of a world movement.The first in a three-part series tracing his belief in Spiritualism, Conan Doyle and the Mysterious World of Light is a detailed, entertaining true history. Includes newspaper reports, biographies of key figures, glossary, index, bibliography - and every article and letter he wrote for the Spiritualist magazine Light between 1887 and 1920, many of which have never been published in book form.

Available post-free in the UK direct from the publisher, www.lifeisamazing.co.uk.This new edition of this excellent book has been carefully edited and the type reset to modern standards. It is not a facsimile reprint, many of which also reproduce marks and flaws in the text from the pages they are copied from, but has been completely freshly set and presented. The book contains the photographs that were included in the first edition, and has a foreword by Portsmouth historian Matt Wingett, putting Father Dolling's work in the context not only of its time, but also reflecting the modern state of the city. It is thus a unique work, faithful to the original, but presented to make it easy to use for the modern reader and scholar. Father Robert Dolling was an extraordinary figure who had a profound influence on the society, morals, education and health of the people of Landport, Portsmouth between 1885 and 1895. Sent to the town to start a mission and revive the influence of the Church, he entered a wild, untamed corner of the kingdom where drinking, violence, prostitution and vice of all sorts proliferated in its dark, tight and stinking streets. Over a period of ten years, Dolling fought to help families who wanted a better life, building friendships, spreading hope - and raising Saint Agatha's - a large basilica-style church at the very heart of the quarter. Filled with wonderful Portsmouth characters and vivid descriptions of Landport life told in Dolling's unique voice, Ten Years In A Portsmouth Slum gives a rare insight into the lives of some of the poorest of the poor in this sometimes violent, always vibrant naval town. With a brand new foreword by Portsmouth historian and writer, Matt Wingett.