Product Description

Sweeping historical drama from the Top Ten Sunday Times bestselling author

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11755 in Books
• Published on: 2008-01-03
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Synopsis
A keepsake collection of Lord John Grey's shorter adventures and a spectacular addition to any Gabaldon fan's library, "Lord John and the Hand of the Devils" brings these three unique novellas together for the first time. "Lord John and the Hellfire Club" marks the first appearance of Lord John outside the Outlander novels (and chronologically precedes the novel Lord John and the Private Matter). A young diplomat is killed in the street as he begs Lord John for help. Witnessing the murder, Grey vows to avenge the young man, as the trail leads to the notorious Hellfire Club and the dark caves beneath Medmenham Abbey. In "Lord John and the Succubus", Grey's assignment as liaison to a Hanoverian regiment in Germany finds him caught between two threats: the advancing French and Austrian army, and the menace of a mysterious 'night-hag,' who spreads fear and death among the troops.Acknowledging that he is unlikely to fall victim to a succubus, Lord John is obliged to contend with the marauding night-hag before the enemy arrives. This tale with a touch of the supernatural bridges the action between Gabaldon's two full-length Lord John tales.Finally, in "Lord John and the Haunted Soldier", Lord John is called to the Arsenal at Woolwich to answer a Royal Commission of Enquiry's questions regarding a cannon that exploded during the battle of Krefeld (a central action in Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade).

Accusations ensue, and Lord John finds himself knee-deep in a morass of gunpowder, treason, and plot - haunted by a dead lieutenant, and followed by a man with no face.

From the Inside Flap
Diana Gabaldon, the New York Times bestselling author of A Breath of Snow and Ashes, delivers three tales of war, intrigue and espionage featuring the unforgettable Lord John Grey. In the heart of the eighteenth century he ventures into an ominous unknown, his companions haunted soldiers, sinister family secrets and lingering memories of a fiery-haired Scot named James Fraser.

In The Hellfire Club, Lord John, drawn in by an attractive stranger in the doorway of a gentleman's club, witnesses the shocking murder of a young diplomat. Vowing to avenge the death, he's led into a maze of political treachery and a debauched underground society, the notorious Hellfire Club.

In The Succubus, Grey's assignment to a regiment in Germany finds him caught between two threats: the advancing French and Austrian armies and the menace of a mysterious `night-hag' who spreads fear and death among the troops.

In the Haunted Soldier, Lord John is called to testify in the case of an exploding battlefield cannon and is forced to confront his own ghosts. Knee-deep in a morass of gunpowder, treason and plot, he is haunted by a dead lieutenant and followed by a man with no face.

In tales seething with desire, madness and political intrigue, Gabaldon once again proves that she can bring history to life like no one else.

From the Back Cover
Diana Gabaldon, the New York Times bestselling author of A Breath of Snow and Ashes, delivers three tales of war, intrigue and espionage featuring the unforgettable Lord John Grey. In the heart of the eighteenth century, Lord John's world is one of mystery and menace; where allies have the power to destroy him with a single blow. As he ventures into an ominous unknown, his companions are haunted soldiers, sinister family secrets and lingering memories of a fiery-haired Scot named James Fraser.

In The Hellfire Club, Lord John, drawn in by an attractive stranger in the doorway of a gentleman's club, witnesses the shocking murder of a young diplomat. Vowing to avenge the death, he's led into a maze of political treachery and a debauched underground society, the notorious Hellfire Club.

In The Succubus, Grey's assignment to a regiment in Germany finds him caught between two threats: the advancing French and Austrian armies and the menace of a mysterious `night-hag' who spreads fear and death among the troops.

In the Haunted Soldier, Lord John is called to testify in the case of an exploding battlefield cannon and is forced to confront his own ghosts. Knee-deep in a morass of gunpowder, treason and plot, he is haunted by a dead lieutenant and followed by a man with no face.

In tales seething with desire, madness and political intrigue, Gabaldon once again proves that she can bring history to life like no one else.

Praise for Diana Gabaldon

`Gabaldon is a born storyteller' Los Angeles Daily News

Customer Reviews

Brill
I have really enjoyed this book and the other lord john novels, they will keep you going untill the next outlander book arrives.

Bypass the other reviews...
Ok, they're out of date, but this is a real book published in 2007 and containing 3 short stories/novellas the fill that gaps between the other Lord John novels.

The first (LJ and the Hellfire Club) is the shortest and is kind of over before it really begins; LJ and the Succubus is set after the novel LJ and the private matter and is set amongst the battlefields of Germany where Lord John has to solve the mystery of a demonic succubus preying on English soldiers while fending off a German countess and dealing with his own sexual feelings for his friend, a German count and fellow army officer. The third, LJ and the Haunted Soldier is probably misnamed but is the most full, set after the second novel LJ and the brotherhood of the blade, it sees Lord John accused of causing the cannon to explode this injured him at the end of the last book and uncovering the conspiracy and corruption that really led to that event.

Fans of Jamie and Clair might be disappointed but I think that with Lord John Diana Gabaldon has reclaimed the imagination that seems to have got stifled in what has now become an overly repetitive series. Here she has a fresh character and a new world to explore and the exhileration is back in her writing.

Personally I think Lord John, an overlooked character in the main series, is fascinating, enigmatic and sensual. The eroticism, though suppressed, is there far more in these stories than before. Gabaldon isn't a great mystery writer, but her strength lies in creating characters and worlds that he readers want to live in and that's here in oodles. So for a true escapist read, turn off the phone, get out the chocolate and wine and enjoy!

It IS a real book!
I saw the other review for this book and it nearly put me off buying this but after going to Diana Gabaldons webpage I can confirm this is a real book and have no clue what the other reviewer is going on about. I am assuming it is not the actual Diana Gabaldon!
Will post a book review when I have read it.
**Have now purchased it and IS IT REAL!!!!!!!!!!**