"Ernest Maltravers" – Tricked into spending a night at the house of a local hoodlum named Danver, our hero has a lucky escape when Alice, the daughter of the evil Danvers betrays her father. Punished for her betrayal, Ernest takes Alice under his wings and the two gradually fall in love. But Danvers is furious and kidnaps Alice from her new hiding place. Will Ernest and Alice ever meet?
"Alice or the Mysteries" – The story continues from the earlier book where Ernest has suffered at the hands of the fate and has become reclusive. One day he meets Florence Lascelles, a young girl engaged to Lumley, his antagonist and things begin to move again for him.

Edward Bulwer-Lytton was an English novelist, poet, playwright and politician. He wrote in a variety of genres, including historical fiction, mystery, romance, the occult, and science fiction. Bulwer-Lytton's literary works were highly popular and his bestselling novels earned him a large fortune.