Ovington's Bank

Ovington's Bank is a forgotten masterpiece from peerless story-teller Stanley Weyman who was once as popular as Dickens, Kipling and Robert Louis Stevenson. Ovington's Bank was written at the height of Weyman's powers, and is considered the finest of his 24 novels. Set in 1825, the novel's themes are as relevant today as then. The tale follows a run on a private bank: in the fall-out, the protagonists are challenged to examine their motives, their morals and their values as the surprising plot unfolds. This is a tale of tension between traditional values and modern opportunities; between ambition and love; self-denial and passion. In this fast-moving story, the unforgettable characters feature in a breathtaking stagecoach dash to London, a violent mugging, a cunning theft, a desperate bid to keep up appearances and the tenderest of love scenes. This elgantly designed Merlin Unwin Books edition has been carefully checked and edited and has been designed with beauiful chapter opening swell-rules. Jim Lawley's essay provides the most complete existing biography of Stanley Weyman (1855-1928), including Weyman’s own unabridged account of his dramatic arrest and imprisonment on suspicion of spying in France in 1885. Explore a fascinating period in history with this detailed and engaging historical novel from prominent author Stanley J. Weyman. The novel unfolds against the backdrop of the Panic of 1825, a crash that was caused in part by a massive fraud set in Poyais, a made-up country in Latin America. Weyman masterfully weaves the financial shockwave caused by this series of events into a tale that highlights how the panic impacted real, salt-of-the-earth people.