A Marble Woman: Unknown Thrillers of Louisa May Alcott [Paperback]

Louisa May Alcott (Author), Madeline B. Stern (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1995

Six years before she wrote Little Women, and in financial straits, Louisa May Alcott entered "Pauline's Passion and Punishment, " a novelette, in a newspaper contest. Not only did it win the $100 prize, but, published anonymously, it marked the first of the series of "blood & thunder tales" that would provide her livelihood for years. For as she said, "They are easy to 'compoze' & are better paid than moral...works." The gruesome, passionate stories reveal a darker side of Alcott. Published anonymously or under the pseudonym of A. M. Barnard, they appeared in weeklies over a century ago. In their mastery of suspense and psychological drama, and in their embodiment of a startlingly intense - if oblique - feminism, they attest to the multifaceted genius of their creator. "Pauline's Passion and Punishment" features a woman who is scorned by her lover and left with her fury and her desire for revenge. The male hero of "The Mysterious Key" must unearth secrets hidden away in a family tomb if he is to realize true love. Mysterious pasts and all-too-present jealousies conflict for some surprising effects on the holiday mood in "The Abbot's Ghost." And "Behind a Mask" tells the chilling story of a woman thwarted by love, whose main motivation becomes her desire to dominate an entire family.

Product Details

• Paperback: 279 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial (September 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380726777
• ISBN-13: 978-0380726776
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #354,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "I Have No Heart, You Know", December 20, 1999

By 

B. E. Keown "Macardle42390" (Massachusetts, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Marble Woman: Unknown Thrillers of Louisa May Alcott (Paperback)

Is it possible to take a person and of them create a statue, cold, unfeeling, totally submissive? This is precisely what Bazil Yorke, sculptor and hermit, sets out to find out when the daughter of a long dead love comes into his care. But something goes terribly wrong. As Bazil attempts to smother the heart of his ward, he finds that his own has been touched. But it is never that easy. Who is Germain, the myterious--and dangerous--stranger who haunts Bazil and Cecil, the Marble Woman? What is the bizarre link that binds these two enemies? Will Cecil's heart of stone give way--before all three lives are ruined?

This story is quite different from Alcott's more poplular works--and even from the rest of her 'blood and thunder tales', that one wonders if this was not merely an excercise and not intended to be read by generations. The main flaw is in the ending, which seems a bit prosaic for such a dark work. It still has her flair for narrative and deep understanding of human nature, however and provides an excellent addition to any Alcott devotee.