White Lies: A Story

by Charles Reade

** This is not a synopsis of the plot; rather, it's an attempt to clear up the confusion regarding this novel. Please do not delete or amend this as it will surely be useful to someone! **

There are two versions of "White Lies" by Charles Reade. One is considerably shorter and far inferior to the other. I have been unable to track down why this version exists, but I suspect that it is a reprint of the original serial chapters. (R.L. Stevenson wrote that the novel was nearly ruined by serialization.) This entry is for the longer, superior edition, which may be found in three volumes at Internet Archive.

How do you tell the difference between editions? As far as I can determine, the short, to-be-avoided edition generally contains the additional title "The Double Marriage". But the surest way to differentiate versions is to check somewhere around page 3 (or a little later) for the character "Doctor St. Aubin". Then, a page or two later will come the first appearance of "Mademoiselle Laure". If the copy you are looking at has those names, then it is the longer, much, much, much better edition. Settle down and read.

If, however, the names of those characters are "Doctor Aubertin" and "Mademoiselle Rose", then put the book aside/delete the file. It is the drastically inferior version and you do not want to waste your time reading it.

Note: The subtitle "A Story" is sometimes written as "A Novel", but either still seems to indicate the preferred version.

Genres: Classics

768 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1857

About the author

Charles Reade was an English novelist and dramatist, best known for The Cloister and the Hearth. He fell out of fashion by the turn of the century - "it is unusual to meet anyone who has voluntarily read him," wrote George Orwell in an essay on Reade - but during the 19th century Reade was one of England's most popular novelists. He was not highly regarded by critics.

Reviews

[Jennifer Booth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice story

It was a nice story without be so clawing sweet. It was cute when the charters got a long. :)

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not up to Reade's finest, but it's enjoyable mayhem nonetheless. But beware! I wrote the following paragraphs for the description to this entry, and I'll repeat them here:

There are two versions of "White Lies" by Charles Reade. One is considerably shorter and far inferior to the other. I have been unable to track down why this version exists, but I suspect that it is a reprint of the original serial chapters. (R.L. Stevenson wrote that the novel was nearly ruined by serialization.) This entry is for the longer, superior edition, which may be found in three volumes at Internet Archive.

How do you tell the difference between editions? As far as I can determine, the short, to-be-avoided edition generally contains the additional title "The Double Marriage". But the surest way to differentiate versions is to check somewhere around page 3 (or a little later) for the character "Doctor St. Aubin". Then, a page or two later will come the first appearance of "Mademoiselle Laure". If the copy you are looking at has those names, then it is the longer, much, much, much better edition. Settle down and read.

If, however, the names of those characters are "Doctor Aubertin" and "Mademoiselle Rose", then put the book aside/delete the file. It is the drastically inferior version and you do not want to waste your time reading it.

Note: The subtitle "A Story" is sometimes written as "A Novel", but either still seems to indicate the preferred version.