When the aristocratic Lady Isabel abandons her husband and children for her wicked seducer, more is at stake than moral retribution. Ellen Wood played upon the anxieties of the Victorian middle classes who feared a breakdown of the social order as divorce became more readily available and promiscuity threatened the sanctity of the family. In her novel the simple act of hiring a governess raises the spectres of murder, disguise, and adultery. Her sensation novel was devoured by readers from the Prince of Wales to Joseph Conrad and continued to fascinate theatre-goers and cinema audiences well...

Something is wrong in Danesbury House. Its walls are sturdy, its interior is well appointed, yet the ground it is built upon is soaked in alcohol. This 1860 award-winning novel traces forty years of addictions, insanity, forgery, and death--hardly the typical Victorian fare. Yet this is no typical novel. A best seller upon its publication, Danesbury House became the Valley of the Dolls for Victorian readers. Its sensational subject and description of addictions made it one of the most popular temperance novels of all time.

The rosary has been nearly ubiquitous among Roman Catholics since its first appearance in Europe five centuries ago. Why has this particular devotional object been so resilient, especially in the face of Catholicism's reinvention in the Early Modern, or -Counter-Reformation, - Era? Nathan D. Mitchell argues in lyric prose that to understand the rosary's adaptability, it is essential to consider the changes Catholicism itself began to experience in the aftermath of the Reformation.
Unlike many other scholars of this period, Mitchell argues that after the Reformation Catholicism actually...

"A Life's Secret," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"East Lynne," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"Elster's Folly," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"It May Be True - Volume I," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"It May Be True - Volume II," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"It May Be True - Volume III," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).

"Johnny Ludlow," by Ellen Wood. Ellen Wood was an english novelist (1814-1887).