THE TWO DESTINIES

This minor work by the Victorian inventor of the English detective novel tells, in turgid prose, of the quest of a highborn man for his lowborn lost love, of her guilty secret, of incredible nobility of character and remorseless perfidy. Narrator Samuel West seems to measure his phrases with a ruler. Otherwise, he does ample justice to his text, excelling in the love scenes and underplaying the melodrama. Y.R. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 00]