Before the Party

Before the Party

W. Somerset Maughamâ€™s â€œBefore the Partyâ€ is a novelette first published in the December 1922 edition of â€œNashâ€™s Magazine.â€ After the death of her husband, an alcoholic colonial administrator in Borneo, Millicent returns to England to live with her parents and sister. Did Millicentâ€™s husband die of a fever, as Millicent claims, or was his throat cut? And if the latter, was it suicide or homicide?

Sample passage:
Mrs. Skinner had thought it very peculiar that her daughter should have no photographs of Harold in her room. Indeed she had spoken of it once, but Millicent had made no reply. Millicent had been strangely silent since she came back from Borneo, and had not encouraged the sympathy Mrs. Skinner would have been so willing to show her. She seemed unwilling to speak of her great loss. Sorrow took people in different ways. Her husband had said the best thing was to leave her alone. The thought of him turned her ideas to the party they were going to.

About the author:
W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) was a British novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. Notable novels are â€œOf Human Bondage,â€ â€œThe Moon and Sixpence,â€ and â€œThe Razorâ€™s Edge.â€
Country USA
Manufacturer A. J. Cornell Publications
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2013-09-07
Format Kindle eBook

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