The Lost Novels of Nellie Bly
For 125 years, the serialized novels Nellie Bly wrote after her famous race around the world have been lost - until now. Discovered by author David Blixt, they are now available, complete with introductions and end-notes from Blixt, as well as Bly's own articles that inspired each novel!
THE MYSTERY OF CENTRAL PARK
Nellie Bly's first novel, in a newly revised edition! A rejected marriage proposal and the corpse of a dead beauty confound Dick Treadwell’s hopes for happiness, until his beloved Penelope sets him a task: she will marry him if he solves—The Mystery of Central Park!
Dick and his sweetheart Penelope discover the body of a beautiful young woman posed upon a Central Park bench. Instantly Dick is suspected of having something to do with the young woman’s death. Moreover, Penelope has long been urging the ne’er-do-well Dick to accomplish something with his life. So he sets out to discover the dead woman’s identity and solve the riddle of her death. Was it innocent? Suicide? Or was it murder?
From the twinkling lights of New York’s high society to dens of iniquity, Dick follows every trail until he uncovers a tenuous lead. Saving another young woman from the jaws of death, he puts his happiness in jeopardy to confront the scoundrel responsible for the dead woman’s fate. Inspired by Bly’s own reporting during her time at the New York World, as she tracked down real-life scoundrels in both business and society, this edition combines both published versions of—The Mystery Of Central Park!
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EVA THE ADVENTURESS
A Romance of a Blighted Life
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Inspired by her interview with convicted criminal Eva Hamilton (wife to the great-grandson of Alexander Hamilton), Nellie Bly’s second novel, Eva The Adventuress, is a blockbuster of the fury of a woman scorned!
Born into poverty, beautiful Eva Scarlett rescues a handsome stranger from a mob, trusting him to marry her. She soon discovers he has tricked her, their marriage is a lie! Alone in New York, a “fallen woman,” Eva sets off down a path of vengenace on all those who have wronged her.
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This volume also includes original articles from the real-life Eva Hamilton Scandal as it unfolded across years. Her conviction for attempted murder was only the beginning of a bizarre and lurid tale of purchased babies, scheming lovers, a mysterious drowning, a fortune at stake, and a turn upon the stage!
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NEW YORK BY NIGHT
A Female Reporter Tracking a $500,000 Robbery
Setting out to solve the bold robbery of a half million dollars in diamonds, playboy and man-about-town Lionel Dangerfield—known as “The Danger”—finds himself in competition with Ruby Sharpe, daring young reporter for the New York Planet.
The millionaire amateur detective sets out to trace the lowest characters who inhabit New York’s night life. Attempting to steal a march on police detective Murray Hazard, Danger and Ruby warily share information. Their mutual attraction is shattered when The Danger discovers that Ruby knows more than she is telling about the case.
But a lead to the identity of the thieves is not the only secret Ruby Sharpe hides! Will The Danger solve the case before Ruby can steal the story—and his heart?
Together they will brave the dangers of . . . New York By Night!
WAYNE'S FAITHFUL SWEETHEART
or, The Artist's Beautiful Model
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Dorette Lover is an artist's model! Having secured employment at last, the beautiful Dorette is in high spirits now that she can support herself and her poor old, blind mother. But no sooner has she she accepted the modeling job than she stumbles across a dead body, with a bloodied man standing over the corpse. Yet she feels certain the man is innocent of murder. As the only witness against him, she promises that she will never testify. In desperation he answers that she will have no choice, unless she becomes—his wife!
So Dorette Lover weds Wayne Webb, scion to an old family and fabulous wealth. At once she is confronted by the beautiful Cora Woodworth, Wayne’s beloved, and now Dorette’s rival for his love. Unbeknownst to them, however, a pair of villains vie for control of Cora’s wealth and Dorette’s secret inheritance. The two women form an unlikely bond, as they both struggle to remain . . .Wayne's Faithful Sweetheart!
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LITTLE LUCKIE
or, Playing For Hearts
Luckie Thurlow enters high society thanks to her school-friend, rich and tender-hearted Elise Kendall. Invited for a weekend stay, little Luckie wins over Elise’s friends with her beauty and kindness. One man in particular is smitten with her—Lloyd Stockton, the reserved heir to a grand fortune. But Luckie only has eyes for his cousin, flirtatious ne’er-do-well Harry Portland.
But Luckie’s mother, the Gypsy Queen, has her own plans for Luckie’s future! As part of an elaborate scheme to avenge the broken heart of her dead sister, the Gypsy Queen plans for Luckie to wed Stockton—even in spite of Luckie’s own heart!
In a tale of murder and suspense, with dramatic reversals and stunning twists, all the lovers bet their lives as they begin . . .Playing For Hearts!
IN LOVE WITH A STRANGER
Through Fire and Water to Win Him
An accidental meeting with a stranger on a street car has Kit Harrington head-over-heels in love. She only has one trouble—she doesn’t know who he is! Now, abandoned by her foster-sister and bereft by the loss of her mother, Kit sets out on a quest to discover the mystery man’s identity and win his love—by whatever means necessary!
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What ensues is a series of ever-escalating escapades, as Kit poses as a ghost, a reporter, a fortune-teller, an actress, a train engineer, a messenger boy, a poker player, a kitchen maid, a marble statue, and an opium fiend, all to gain access to her beloved Howell Humphrey, millionaire man-about-town. Yet Kit never imagined her rival for Howell’s affections would be her own foster-sister, Vida! Meanwhile Howell’s best friend has in turn fallen for Kit, as much in love with a stranger as Kit herself!
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A novel filled with desperate acts, kidnapping, drowning, disease, train derailments, even a hurricane, Kit braves it all, determined to walk through fire and water to win him. All because she is . . .In Love With A Stranger!
THE LOVE OF THREE GIRLS
The Rivalry Between an Heiress, a Beauty, and a Factory Girl
Sixteen year-old orphan Christmas Cherry escapes from the foster home on Blackwell’s Island without a friend in the world. Unknown to Christmas, she shares a birthday with wealthy, petted, and proud Amor Escandon, who has also run away after witnessing her beloved father commit a terrible crime.
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Christmas and Amor both find a protector in handsome George Chesterland. Together they accept shelter in the home of a poor cabdriver and his family, only to find a bitter foe in the cabbie’s daughter, Lillian Day. All three long for Chesterland’s love, while he only has eyes for the haughty Amor.
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But Amor’s secret pursues her. The evil Matteo Blanco demands her hand in marriage, or else he will reveal her father’s crime. Yet upon meeting Lillian and Christmas, Blanco becomes determined to possess all three women at once, demanding . . .The Love Of Three Girls!
LITTLE PENNY, CHILD OF THE STREETS
The Two Beautiful Outcasts of New York
Little Penny Pendleton, child of the streets, is taken in by a kindly man and given a home. But when he is wrongly accused of murder, Penny must use her wits to clear his name, even if it means betraying the man she loves!
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PRETTY MERRIBELLE
The Strangest Fate that Ever Befell a Beautiful Young Girl
Merribelle Harleigh is the most charming and beautiful worker in the paper-box factory. When a fire breaks out, the envious Lotta Loring contrives that Merribelle should be left inside the burning factory to die! Her plot is foiled by the handsome Cedric Sutherland, heir to a massive fortune. Only when she awakens, Merribelle has no memory of who she is!
Seizing his moment, Cedric’s cousin Frank Ashley mesmerizes the befuddled girl, now called Rosalind, and uses her as a pawn in a plot to steal away Cedric’s fortune. No sooner are Cedric and Rosalind married but she seems to die. At the graveyard, her body disappears, rescued by Cedric’s neighbor, Granville Norcross. When she awakens, Meribelle is her old self, and falls wildly in love with Granville, not knowing she is already wed to Cedric!
None of this suits Frank Ashley or Lotta Loring, both determined to gain Cedric’s fortunes, whatever they must to do. . .Pretty Merribelle!
TWINS AND RIVALS
The Snare of Riches and the Spell of Love
The twins have differing views of love. Dimple plans to wed for wealth. Della, however, plans to only marry for love.
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When Dimple marries the old millionaire Mr. Darlington, she thinks she has won the prize. But soon she finds life filled with crippling loneliness. On a visit to her sister, she is rescued from certain death by a handsome stranger, and realizes at once that Della has been right all along. But even if she were not already tied to the grumbling and jealous Darlington, there is another obstacle to Dimple’s happiness. The man she loves is already betrothed—to Dimple’s sister Della!
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A passionate story of desire and denial, this final novel of Nellie Bly’s pen is perhaps her most prescient, mirroring events of her life to come. Not based on her reporting but on her own questions of love and the duality of her own nature, Bly plays out the questions that vex her in . . .Twins & Rivals!
With rich imagination and meticulous research, David Blixt has brought the hectic, exciting world of nineteenth-century journalism vividly to life. His Nellie Bly is determined, independent, crafty, irresistible -- a heroine any reader would be delighted to get to know.
Matthew Goodman, New York Times bestselling author of Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland's History-Making Race Around the World
Dramatic, engrossing, and spirited, What Girls Are Good For takes the reader straight to the heart of an unsung American hero--a feminist icon whose voice rings loud and true. This is a must-read for anyone who loves an underdog and celebrates justice; the perfect accompaniment for our present times.
Olivia Hawker, international bestselling author of The Ragged Edge of Night
