The Black Arrow: Classics Illustrated

The real life adventures of author Robert Louis Stevenson rival those of his famous fictional characters. Born into a strictly religious, middle-class Edinburgh family, he later rebelled and refused to follow his father into the lighthouse construction business, opting instead for a literary career and marriage to Fanny, the love of his life and a crack-shot American divorcee. His travels took him to France, America and the South Pacific. Stevenson was an atheist and free spirit - in Samoa, where he died - and he fought in a civil war for independence. In 1886, the blockbuster novel Kidnapped was published - a dramatic adventure of abduction and life on the run in the wilds of Scotland. Stevenson died in 1894, just 44 years old. The Samoan natives, who were devoted to Stevenson, cut a track through the jungle to create a resting place for him on top of the mountain above his beloved Vailima estate.

Set in England during the fifteenth-century Wars of the Roses, this swashbuckling historical novel by the author of "Treasure Island" and "Kidnapped" tells the story of young Dick Shelton. Betrayed by his treacherous and brutal guardian, Sir Daniel Brackley, Dick seeks the help of John Amend-All, leader of the mysterious fellowship of the Black Arrow and Brackley's sworn enemy. Pitted against fierce fighters, a treacherous priest, and Sir Daniel, Dick seeks to become a knight and rescue his true love.
Brimming with adventure, suspense, and romance, this thrilling tale presents a classic portrait of England during one of its most tumultuous eras, as Dick is pulled by his loyalties to the houses of both York and Lancaster. He must make a crucial choice, for his fate and the fate of England hang in the balance.
Dover (2001) unabridged republication of a standard edition."