First published over twenty years ago it is fantastic to see Simon and Schuster have brought this back to our awareness. This is a tale of obsessive love, passion and betrayal. The beautiful but fragile Agnes is one of the most heart breaking characters you will ever read about. This is unputdownable, compelling and beautifully written.
"During all those years when everyone wanted me to tell them...how I came to fire that shot, I never wanted to talk. Now I think I do..."
Agnes Dempster - young, beautiful, and accused of murder. Vermont, 1890. After an unhappy childhood, Agnes Dempster turns her back on her family and escapes to the city to begin a new life. There she meets Frank Holt, a local stonecutter, a man who captures her imagination and opens her eyes to an entirely different world. They begin a relationship, but over time Agnes becomes more dependent on Frank and this soon becomes an obsession - a dangerous one. And when she discovers her beloved is not as perfect as the image she had created of him, the cracks in her already fragile psyche begin to deepen. He is a betrayer, a man who will never make her happy. And as her life spirals out of control Agnes is propelled into a state of barely-controlled madness; a madness that leads to a chaotic and destructive resolution which will affect her and those around her for the rest of their lives…
'The power of this passionate novel lies in the creation of its heroine, Agnes. I can't remember a single other character in fiction with whom I have ever identified more.' Margaret Forster
'A remarkable book...a riveting and intricate and altogether astonishing novel' Alice Walker
Author
About Susan Fromberg Schaeffer
Susan Fromberg Schaeffer was born in Brooklyn, NY, and was educated at the University of Chicago. She is the author of thirteen novels and five voulmes of poetry. Susan lives in Chicago.
