author
Hugh Conway
1847–1885
A Victorian novelist who turned everyday experience into fast-moving popular fiction, he shot to fame with Called Back and became one of the bestselling English storytellers of the 1880s.
1 Audiobook
A Fortnight of Folly
by Maurice Thompson, Hugh Conway
About the author
Born in Bristol on December 26, 1847, Frederick John Fargus wrote under the pen name Hugh Conway. Before publishing fiction, he worked in his family's auction business, a practical background that set him apart from many literary figures of his time.
His breakthrough came with Called Back in 1883, a mystery-romance that became a huge success and made him widely popular. He followed it with other novels including Dark Days and A Family Affair, building a reputation for lively, readable stories that reached a broad audience.
Conway's career was brief. He died in Monte Carlo on May 15, 1885, still only in his thirties, but his work left a clear mark as part of the wave of highly popular late-Victorian fiction.