1899 Ready-Money Mortiboy by Walter Besant & James Rice Antique Fiction Book

1899 Ready-Money Mortiboy by Walter Besant & James Rice Antique Fiction Book Ready-Money Mortiboy By Walter Besant & James Rice Published by Chatto & Windus: London 1899 In Stunning Embossed Cloth Bindings - With Frontis Portrait "Ready-Money Mortiboy is one of the earliest and most successful collaborations between Victorian authors Walter Besant and James Rice, first appearing in 1872 and becoming a popular fixture of late nineteenth-century English fiction. Written as a "matter-of-fact story," the novel combines social observation with lively characterisation and explores themes of wealth, family relationships, honour and ambition. Set in provincial England, the story centres upon the fortunes of the Mortiboy family and the world of banking and commerce, portraying the contrasts between material success and personal integrity with humour and sympathy. Besant and Rice were noted for their ability to create engaging narratives grounded in everyday life, and Ready-Money Mortiboy helped establish the literary partnership that would later produce such celebrated works as The Golden Butterfly and The Chaplain of the Fleet. The novel captures the manners and values of Victorian society while presenting memorable personalities and dramatic turns of fortune. Though written in a realistic style, it possesses the warmth, wit and moral insight that made the authors highly regarded among contemporary readers. This handsome 1899 Chatto & Windus edition is presented in striking embossed blue cloth bindings with gilt titles and decorative panel to the upper cover. It includes the frontispiece portrait of James Rice and represents a particularly attractive late Victorian issue of the authors' first great success. With its richly decorated publisher's cloth and well-preserved appearance, the volume is an appealing example of nineteenth-century book design and a desirable addition to collections devoted to Victorian literature, Walter Besant, or the classic fiction of Chatto & Windus." Light wear to covers and spine as shown. Covers are firm and book is structurally sound. Pages clean and well presented with odd age mark. Complete in 512 pages + extensive publishers advertising. An excellent copy in very good condition overall. Please study photos to further understand condition. Size 20cm x 13.5cm x 3.5cm - 512 Pages + Publishers Advertising