I gossipped a little in the Mail last week ; about Mr Frederics, who is one of the most successful of what are vaguely called tho “rising” novelists, and I was glad to have an opportunity of sampling his quality. His “ Return of tho O'Mahony ” is a good honest piece of work, full of exciting incident and good character drawing. The real O’Mahony is fighting for the Northerners in the Civil-war, when he is sought for from his native land to inherit a castle and a small fortune. By a curious chance a fellow soldier, Zeke Tisdale, a good specimen of tho dry humoured Yank, gets possession of the papers and personates the heir, proceeding to Ireland and being duly installed as the O’Mahony of Murrisk. Of hia ad ventures in his new sphere, both tragic and comic, I could write at some length did time permit, but suffice to say that in \ the end the son of tho real O’Mahony comes to his own, and Zeke, having endeared himself to the people, and ' especially to the young O’Mahony’s fair ' cousin, whom the young fellow marries, the rightful heir allows the villagers to still think tho bogus claimant to have { been tho Simou Pure. ( Mr Cutcliffe Hyne’s story is a very j smartly-written account of tho adventures r of two Englishmen who seek for a hidden ‘ treasure hoard of diamonds in tho island of Corsica. They have a rival in tho search, and the adventures they meet with ’ are at times of a very sensational character. I cannot say, however, that the story I pleases me so much as the short stories by the same author which have recently attracted so much notice when published " in the Pall Mall Magazine , Chambers’ * Journal and other magazines. The smart ness is a trifle forced, but “The Recipe *] for Diamonds” is a very readable book, notwithstanding, i

Good sensible books for children are always welcome especially when they are not, as unfortunately they too often are, mawkish in tone. I can recommend to your notice, as a gift for your little niece, “ The Youngsters of Murray Home ” (vn.), an Australian children’s story, written by Miss Ella Chaffoy and published by Messrs Ward, Lock and Co. 