- Muriel Spark is a wholly original presence in modern literature. This volume, which contains all her published short stories together with new writing, amply displays her extraordinary talent. From her first published story, ‘The Seraph and the Zambezi’, to ‘Christmas Fugue’, her most recent work, this definitive collection spans the career of one of the defining writers of our age. Judges and priests, ghosts and murder, intrigue and French châteaux: all the trademark Spark obsessions are here, and much more besides.