The Green Ray

This new edition of The Green Ray brings the rarely available title by the famous French author Jules Verne to a new generation. The mysterious scientific phenomenon of the green ray is unpredictable and elusive. When Helena hears of its apparent mystical effects on the mind and soul she enlists her uncles and two very different suitors, one artist and one amateur scientist, to find it. They travel to Scotland to seek to catch a glimpse of green rays which shoot out from the sunset. Their numerous attempts are always unsuccessful, thwarted by clouds or boats blocking the sun, until finally the phenomenon is visible, but they are no longer watching the horizon. BACK COVER The ray has the virtue of meaning that anyone who has seen it can no longer make a mistake in matters of sentiment; its appearance destroys illusions and lies. When a newspaper article tells Helena Campbell, whose impending arrange marriage is less than a love match, that seeing the green ray is an indication of true love, she refuses to marry anyone until she has seen it. Her quest to find the green ray takes her on an island-hopping tour of the Hebrides that nearly costs her her life, and Helena must ask herself - is seeing the green ray worth it? With which of her suitors will Helena see the ray? Or will she never see it at all? The Green Ray has all the hallmarks of a Verne classic - danger, romance, and of course a tale of marvellous adventure. Karen Loukes' new translatioj of Jules Verne's 'lost' Scottish novel recaptures the spirit of the original French text.