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The Charles Reade Library

The Charles Reade Library

By: Charles Reade
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Welcome, Reader. Here you shall find no abridgement, no timid excerpt, no mutilated chapter smoothed for idle ears. Here the tale stands whole. The Charles Reade Library restores to the living voice the full vigour of those romances in which wrong is confronted, justice pursued, and the human heart tried as by fire. Prisons shall clang, cloisters shall echo, hearth-fires shall glow, and the oppressed shall speak. For what is a novel, if not a protest against falsehood, a plea for mercy, a trumpet against cruelty? And what is reading, if not the communion of earnest minds across the gulf of years?

Come then. Sit close. The page is opened. The truth, though resisted, shall be heard.Public domain Daily
Episodes
  • The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 24 Part 1

    The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 24 Part 1
    Jul 14 2026
    In which young Gerard encounters the singular customs of German roadside inns, from stifling common rooms redolent with clammy odours to the communal dormitories where strangers are packed like cargo; and after a wild and rain-drenched journey culminating in a night spent among curious companions, he finds brief refuge in the charity of a monastery, where music and kindness offer balm to his wearied spirit. Throughout this passage, the peculiarities of foreign lands, the rough humour of their denizens, and the stoic endurance of a weary traveller are observed with gentle wit and a touch of melancholy longing.
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    43 mins
  • The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 23

    The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 23
    Jul 13 2026
    In which the tender bond between Gerard and Margaret is tenderly tested by peril and parting, as they navigate the bittersweet moments of love intertwined with sacrifice and hope. Gerard’s solitary departure across borders and landscapes, guided by faith and yearning, sets him upon a solitary quest into the unknown, beneath the wide and arching skies.
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    13 mins
  • The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 22

    The Cloister and the Hearth Chapter 22
    Jul 12 2026
    In which a sudden and clever stratagem turns the hunters’ pursuit into a thwarted chase, marked by the skilful interventions of Martin Wittenhaagen and the unexpected mishap of a mule. The youthful pair Gerard and Margaret, aided by Martin's devoted efforts, manage a breathless escape through the woodland glade, leaving their pursuers daunted and without trace.
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    4 mins
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