Leonard Merrick (1864 - 1939) was a well known English novelist, who was popular with the likes of such as H. G. Wells, J. M. Barrie, G. K. Chesterton and William Dean Howells.
Many of his stories have, over the years, been adapted to the screen. J. M. Barrie called Merrick the "novelist's novelist".
"The Child in the Garden" is the story of an independent young woman with a passion for archeology who enjoys travelling to sites of antiquity in pusuit of her research. Meanwhile her fiancé, a highly traditional curate, is unhappy at her level of freedom and independence. When he finally travels out to Greece and catches up with her in a remote village, she breaks off their engagement. Soon after this she experiences a terrifying, but at the same time thrilling adventure. She is abducted by a gang of brigands with a most attractive and seductive captain. She suddenly realises that she is in a terrible dilemma.
