The Unbidden Guest. By E. W. Hornung. (Longmans.)—This is another
vigorous story of Australian life by the author of "A Bride from the Bush." A girl engaged in a theatrical chorus becomes possessed of a letter of introduction brought by an English young lady to a family living at an Australian station, and passes herself off as the person mentioned therein. She is invited to stay, and scandalises her hosts not a little, more perhaps than a young person who, we may suppose, had some- thing of an actor's habitude, would have done. She is a wild creature, who has had a stormy past ; but she has much of good in her, and she shows it in no doubtful way. Mr. Hornung develops the situation with considerable skill, and succeeds in awakening our sympathy with a heroine who at first does not appear to promise very well.—We cannot say as much in favour of Thunderbolt : an Australian Story, by the Rev. S. Middleton Macdonald (Hurst and Blackett). This is a tale of a bushranger's exploits and escapes. When the writer reaches the climax, he is actually content to quote a newspaper account. Generally, he does not impress us favourably, either as to style or feeling. The "gubernatorial barouche " standing for the " governor's carriage," is a sample of the one ; a sneer at Mr. Paton, who has certainly done enough to exempt him from Mr. Macdonald's criticism, is a specimen of the other.
Previous page
