Croft Manor Documents

Winston's Letter

Miss Croft,

Pardon the mess in the foyer, but a rather large shipment of antiquities arrived while you were out. I would have had the crates placed in the Gallery, but the security alarm has somehow been activated, locking the room from the inside. If this was not concerning enough, the renovators have shut off the water supply to the entire manor in order to continue construction of the pool house. On the bright side, I've located your missing journal and returned it to its appointed hiding place in your room.

Faithfully in your service,
​
Winston

Books

"And there he stood, assuring all within earshot of his coming victory until it was time to return to his ships. Leaving Athens to undertake his mighty task."

“In the summer the risk of flooding should not be discounted, as a single rainfall can easily last for days; overflowing the Pirai River and threatening Santa Cruz de la Sierra and the Bolivian lowlands to the South."

"When Lord Byron gave the Bridge of Sighs its name in the 19th century, he imagined what it must have been like for a prisoner to take one final look at the beauty of Venice, before being led to their fate in the prison below."

"...the legend tells us that the kings of Tibet were descendants from heaven with ropes attaching them to heaven itself. When they died, a heavenly creature would pull the ropes up, bringing their bodies up with them."

"As Charles Kane noted in his superb history of the Iron Curtain, there were numerous precedents against the practicality or feasibility of the fortress system of foreign policy."

“Better still, the new 50 caliber round comes with a full metal jacket designed to maximise muzzle velocity and power to the target."

"Pink is the new black"

"It is only through knowing our history that we can learn from the past."

"Prolific evidence exists that the ancient Eskimos would carve extremely detailed ivory maps of their coastline and hunting waters."

"And while any number of things can go wrong underground, the most dangerous aspect of spelunking is exposure to methane gasses which are difficult to detect without specific equipment."

"The native population of Costa Rica was ravaged by diseases brought by its conquerors and barely managed to survive to see the establishment of a capital city."

"The roots of the banyan tree grow relentlessly and in every direction. Many of the ancient temples of Angkor have been brought down as those roots exploit the small spaces between their massive stones."

"The concept of the sundial has existed for thousands of years and is one of the earliest devices for time measurement." There's some numbers written on the inside cover. 11 2 7. l wonder what they refer to?

"Anyone with even a cursory knowledge of mineralogy would arrive at the same conclusion. Wherever this Isis stone was formed, it wasn't on Earth."

"...And even as their hooves shook the earth beneath him, Gilead gathered his remaining strength and drew back his bow." -The Trials of Gilead, Volume 1

"As he struggled mightily to calm himself, Gilead removed the poison arrow from its quiver." -The Trials of Gilead, Volume II.

"And Gilead knew the gears of his heart would never turn again as he sacrificed his one true love to save the kingdom he had fought for so long to protect." -The Trials of Gilead, Volume III

"...the ruins of Atlantis were lost beneath the sea when the glaciers melted some ten thousand years ago."

"When the Spaniards had all but wiped out the Incan empire, the remaining survivors fled to the mountains and disappeared. Legends say they retreated to the hidden city of Vilcabamba."

"With the Silk Road bringing thousands of travellers into the region annually, Delhi was soon overrun by merchants selling goods of every possible description."

"It was here in the sixth century BC, between the Aventine and the Palatine hills, that the Circus Maximus was born."

"...by far the most intriguing is the legend surrounding the fabled dagger of Xi'an and the awesome power it wields."

"But the new pharaoh was not content with all that was now his. No, Ramses the second wanted even more; he had visions of an empire so spectacular all mankind would come to marvel at its glory."

"While other traps have a similar closing mechanism, it was the Egyptians who perfected the savage effectiveness of the holding barbs."

"The luxury liner Maria Doria has never been found, however treasure hunters the world over search endlessly for its resting place."