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Whom God Hath Sundered (1910-1913) is a trilogy by Oliver Onions. Published toward the beginning of Onions' career as a leading novelist and short story writer specializing in genre fiction, Whom God Hath Sundered is a largely unknown trilogy of crime novels deemed a forgotten classic by British literary critic Martin Seymour-Smith. From the beginning, In Accordance With the Evidence-the first installment of the trilogy-is as much the story of James Jeffries as it is of Archie Merridew. Unlike Jeffries, who was "atrociously poor...in those days," Merridew was a young man whose every opportunity seemed to have been ordained at birth: "His folks lived at Guildford; his father paid his rent for him, thirty-eight pounds a year; and his pleasant quarters under the roof had everything that mine hadn't." As their story unfolds, Jeffries falls for the beautiful Evie Soames, but jealousy and competition with Archie threaten to derail his every move. Unhappy with his low-paying work, luckless in love, Jeffries begins to resent Archie with a near-violent passion. When Archie becomes engaged to Evie, Jeffries is left with no choice. As he looks back on his life from the distance of a dozen or more years, he recounts his path from hardship to murder, laying bare the psychological traumas that led him to commit his crime. In parts two and three, The Debit Account and The Story of Louie, we see the consequences of his heinous act unfold. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Oliver Onions' Whom God Hath Sundered is a classic of British literature reimagined for modern readers.
About the author
George Oliver Onions, known professionally as Oliver Onions, was an English writer born on November 13, 1873, in Bradford, United Kingdom. Onions is best remembered for his work in the supernatural genre, particularly his ghost stories. He achieved significant recognition for his collection Widdershins, which features tales of eerie occurresnces and psychological horror. Another of his most famous works is the novella The Beckoning Fair One, widely anthologized for its exploration of haunted spaces and the unsettling effects of isolation. Throughout his career, Onions wrote in a variety of genres, but his supernatural tales, with their atmospheric tension and psychological depth, left a lasting impression on the horror genre. In addition to his writing, Onions was also known for his involvement in the literary world and his collaboration with other authors. He was married to Berta Ruck in 1909, and the couple had two sons, Arthur Oliver and William Richard Oliver. Onions passed away on April 9, 1961, in Aberystwyth, United Kingdom, at the age of 87. His legacy endures, particularly through his contributions to ghost stories and the unsettling, gothic atmosphere he created in his works.
