Round the Sofa (1859), by Elizabeth Gaskell complete volume 1, and 2

Each week a small circle gathers round the sofa of Mrs Dawson, an invalid, and the guests take turns telling stories. Gaskell's 1859 collection uses this gentle frame, narrated by the newcomer Miss Greatorex, to hold six tales of striking range. It opens with My Lady Ludlow, prompted by Mrs Dawson's mention of her cousin, then moves to An Accursed Race, a history of the persecuted Cagots of Europe, and The Doom of the Griffiths, where a curse foretells that a son of the eighth generation will kill his father.

Half a Life-Time Ago follows Susan, torn between love and duty to her family. The Poor Clare traces the origin of a supposed witch's curse, and The Half-Brothers sets a favoured boy beside a neglected one. A rewarding find for anyone who loves Cranford and wants Gaskell at her shorter and stranger.