THE LORD OF THE SEA.
London: Grant Richards, 1901. Octavo, pp. [i-vii] viii [1] 2-496 [note: first leaf is a blank], original pictorial beige cloth, front stamped in red and black, spine stamped in black, t.e.g. First edition, first printing, first issue. THE LORD OF THE SEA, published in May 1901, is one of Shiel's most important and popular works. "... with the aid of a cache of diamonds recovered from a meteorite [Richard Hogarth] finances the building of giant floating fortresses that give him command of the sea-lanes. He uses this advantage to blackmail the nations into peace and social progress ... THE LORD OF THE SEA is exceptional in offering an elaborate account of the reforms demanded by Hogarth." - Stableford, Scientific Romance in Britain 1890-1950, pp. 77-8. "A brilliantly, highly imaginative work, conveying conviction despite its belated adherence to an early aesthetic of melodrama." - Bleiler, Science-Fiction: The Early Years 2026. [Reference: Anatomy of Wonder (2004) II-1003. Clareson, Science Fiction in America, 1870s-1930s 691. Clarke, Tale of the Future (1978), p. 27. Locke, A Spectrum of Fantasy, p. 196. Negley, Utopian Literature: A Bibliography 1028. Bleiler (1978), p. 179. Reginald 13027. Morse, The Works of M. P. Shiel Updated (1980), pp. 93-101]. W. H. Smith blind stamp at upper corner of front free end paper, inked name and date just below, some darkening to free end papers, an attractive nearly fine to fine copy. (28396). Item #28396
Price: $1,500.00