Birmingham state herald., 1896-04-19
MENTION OF NEW BOOKS.

Robert Barr was associated in London with Jerome K Jerome in founding and editing the "Idler," though he recently retired to devote himself entirely to storytelling. His Fenian story, Tn the Midst of Alarms" is remarkably good one. MT. Barr also wrote "The Face ana the Mask" His latest, which is more pretentious story than any he has yet undertaken, is "A Woman Intervenes, as she generally does in most cases.
 The story opens in the office of a big New York newspaper, the Argus, such an enterprising and up-to-date sheet as we know the World or the Herald to be.
 MT. Barr, while still young man, drifted into journalism, joining the cal. torial staff of the Detroit Free Press, or which the Hon. William E. Quinby, now minister 10 the Netherlands, was at that time the editor Here his humorous sketches, under the pen name Of Luke sharp made him known to wlde con stituency the country over.
 This training and experience lenu forcefulness to the pen of the author in the graphic and vivid description he gives us of the scene in the newspaper office. of the failure of the young reporter to accomplish the mission upon whlch he was sent to Canada and of his conse- uuent humiliation.
  Brewster. a young woman reporter, Who as Dolly Dimple," reminds the reader wonderfully of Nellie Bly," though l feel sure the latter would never nave bungled or failed in her assigned work
 Look here, Jennie" began that au- stere individual, "do you WISH lo 'ahe trip to Europe2'
 Naturally. Miss Jennie, like most other folks would do, answered in the affirma- tive and so made all her arrangements to sail on the Caloric week thence. Her mission on the ship was accomplished neatly and with little apparent effort on the part of Miss Dolly, but "a woman in- tervenes" and in the end spells the very neat cabegram already to wire to the Argus The story is exceedingly well told and well developed making 1t smooth and entertaining reading. There ,s some talk of mining stocks and values unintelljgible to the ordinary reader, but even this part MT. Barr ma kes clever and attractive and in his new story he may well claim the praise and credit he de- serves of being an accomplished and en- tertaining story-teller. The work Is very fully illustrated by Hal Hurst, the Eng Iish artist whose manner resembles that of c. D. Gibson, adding much of vim and esprit to the tale. (Frederick A. Stokes company; for sale by Smith & Montgomery)
 In strong contrast 10 RoDefl Ddrr as d writer of fiction stands MT. William Le Queux, who, it is said, is heir apparent to the throne of King Rider Haggard; at any rate, like that popular young author, his inventiveness is unfagging and his quest for horrors is of an exemplary keenness. His story, "Zoraida, a Ro- nance of the Harem and the Great Sa- hara." contains the adventures of a Frenchman and an Englishman in the widest desert and among the most saw age of the followers of the prophet Zo- raida. the dazzlingly beautiful heroine, who. in Africa, leads frenzied tribe to conquest : Id slaughter and in England takes captive the court of St.. James, Is no more difficult of belief than the rest. The latest story by MT. Le Queux is The Temptress," and it bids far to sustain his well-earned reputation-as writer Of romance which is blood curdling and. full of the clements of adventure. crime and terror.
 Ii is not possible that all writers may possess the power of weaving thrilling romances frcm pure. guileless adven- lures. such as the genius of a Hope or a Weyman can do. Some tales must deal