Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson (Cassell & Company, 1886, First Edition)

This Cassell & Company first edition (1886) is of interest to collectors of Robert Louis Stevenson first editions, Victorian adventure fiction, and 19th century Scottish literature.

About: True first issue of the first edition, featuring the July 1886 advertisement code (5G. 7.86) at the rear, and August 1886 inscription. Original green cloth binding with gilt lettering to spine. Some foxing to page edges, light spine lean, and burred page edges; pages themselves are bright and clean throughout. The folding map: Sketch of the Cruise of the Brig Covenant and the probable course of David Balfour's Wanderings, is in near fine condition, a notable positive as this map is frequently absent or damaged in copies of this edition. Inscribed to the front free endpaper: Ernest S. Coulson, August 1886 and Bertha Coulson - a same-year association copy.

Details:

• Title: Kidnapped: Being Memoirs of the Adventures of David Balfour in the Year 1751
• Author: Robert Louis Stevenson
• Publisher: Cassell & Company, London
• Publication Date: 1886
• Edition: 1st Edition, first Issue
• Issue Points: July 1886 advertisement code (5G. 7.86) at rear
• Binding: Hardcover, original green cloth
• Condition: Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: No dust jacket (as issued)
• Provenance: Inscribed by Ernest S. Coulson, August 1886; Bertha Coulson

Synopsis: First edition Cassell & Company imprint, second issue with July 1886 advertisement code, original cloth binding with same-year provenance inscription and near fine folding map. Collectible Stevenson title, desirable for bibliophiles and collectors of Victorian adventure fiction.

Review: Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped is an 1886 adventure novel set in Scotland following the Jacobite rising of 1745, tracing the journey of young David Balfour after he is kidnapped and sold into servitude. The narrative combines historical drama, Highland landscapes, and Stevenson's characteristic blend of action and moral complexity, making it one of the defining works of 19th century Scottish literature.