The Mystery of a Turkish Bath

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

25656

Title

The Mystery of a Turkish Bath

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

Set in a luxurious English winter resort, this novel follows the arrival of the enigmatic Princess Zairoff at a hotel frequented by the afflicted and the fashionable. As the Princess's mysterious presence captivates the guests, her hidden past and psychic abilities unravel, leading to a dramatic confrontation that tests the limits of love, duty, and the supernatural.

Summary up to 500 words

In Rita's *The Mystery of a Turkish Bath*, the narrative unfolds within a sumptuous English winter resort where fashionable invalids gather to treat ailments like rheumatic gout and neuralgia. The setting is dominated by the Turkish Baths, a place of oriental luxury where the mundane complaints of the guests are interrupted by the arrival of Princess Zairoff. Striking in her beauty and foreign grace, the Princess claims to suffer only from weak nerves rather than physical illness, immediately igniting intense curiosity and speculation among the assembled guests. The following evening, the Princess appears at a dinner party accompanied by Colonel Estcourt, an Indian officer drawn to her mysterious allure. During the gathering, the Princess enters a trance-like state, speaking in a disjointed, prophetic voice. She recounts a vision of a palace, a battle, and a lover she must protect, warning of impending doom. Her words cause Colonel Estcourt to suffer a severe mental shock, leaving him catatonic and ill. The next morning, Mrs. Ray Jefferson discovers that the Princess has lost her memory of the previous night's events. The Princess confesses that her trances are real but unreliable; she fears she has failed her supernatural duty to protect the Colonel. Overwhelmed by guilt and the realization that her human emotions have compromised her mission, the Princess resolves to sacrifice herself. Despite her efforts to regain the Colonel's forgiveness, her condition deteriorates rapidly. In a final, poignant scene, she fades away in the heat of the bathhouse, dying peacefully. The novel concludes with the realization that her death was a 'greater Mystery' than her life, leaving the guests to grapple with the reality of her sacrifice and the blurred lines between the phenomenal and the spiritual.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

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Categories

• Fiction
• Juvenile Fiction