Book Review: Mrs. Poe: A Novel by Lynn Cullen

About the Book:

 

A vivid and compelling novel about a woman who becomes entangled in an affair with Edgar Allan Poe—at the same time she becomes the unwilling confidante of his much-younger wife.

It is 1845, and Frances Osgood is desperately trying to make a living as a writer in New York; not an easy task for a woman—especially one with two children and a philandering portrait painter as her husband. As Frances tries to sell her work, she finds that editors are only interested in writing similar to that of the new renegade literary sensation Edgar Allan Poe, whose poem, “The Raven” has struck a public nerve.

She meets the handsome and mysterious Poe at a literary party, and the two have an immediate connection. Poe wants Frances to meet with his wife since she claims to be an admirer of her poems, and Frances is curious to see the woman whom Edgar married.

As Frances spends more and more time with the intriguing couple, her intense attraction for Edgar brings her into dangerous territory. And Mrs. Poe, who acts like an innocent child, is actually more manipulative and threatening than she appears. As Frances and Edgar’s passionate affair escalates, Frances must decide whether she can walk away before it’s too late...

Set amidst the fascinating world of New York’s literati, this smart and sexy novel offers a unique view into the life of one of history’s most unforgettable literary figures.

Praise for Mrs. Poe: 

"Mrs. Poe is a compelling tale of ill-fated love, passion, and the writing life in antebellum New York, rich with period detail and suspense." - Jennifer Chiaverini, New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker

"Part romance, part mystery, part biography, this fictional reenactment of the mistress of Edgar Allan Poe escorts you into the glittering world of New York in the 1840s, when poets were celebrities and the admission of emotions—like silk gowns and glossy beaver hats—were a luxury...A bewitching, vivid trip into the heyday of American literary society." - Oprah.com

"Cullen creates a delicious sense of suspense and impending doom; antebellum Manhattan and the ruling literati cast an irresistible spell." - Atlanta Magazine

My Thoughts: 

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
that at the library I spied a fictional tale of Poe's young bride.
Over the pages I did pore, but the book became a chore,
the text echoing verbatim lore, a novel that had come before.
After that I swore - no more!

In December 2011, I noticed Lenore Hart's The Raven’s Bride on the new release shelves at my local library. Intrigued, I checked it out and brought it home. Soon after, I learned the book had drawn allegations of plagiarism for its resemblance to Cothburn O'Neal's The Very Young Mrs. Poe. Being unfamiliar with either novel, I requested a copy of O'Neal's work via ILL and read both back to back. The similarities made me uncomfortable, but I was also unimpressed. The Poe marriage felt passionless under both pens, and the experience of reading the books soured my interest in fiction related to the macabre poet.

My feelings hadn’t changed when Lynn Cullen's Mrs. Poe was released two years later. I landed an ARC, but I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about it and cynically assumed the novel would fall as flat as its predecessors. The comparison wasn’t fair; I knew it then, and I admit it now, but I couldn’t help it. I was salty and unwilling to entertain positive expectations for a novel that recalled my prior disappointments. 

A ladies' man in life, contemporary depictions often paint Poe as an awkward loner. Overcoming those misconceptions was no small task, but Cullen effectively presents Poe as an authentically attractive and believable romantic lead. Cullen writes Edgar as a wordsmith with a dark imagination, a man whose depth and complexity are only fractally reflected in his writing. She doesn’t dull his flaws, but she teases the man from myth and allows readers to see beyond the caricatures.

Spellbinding and seductive, Mrs. Poe is an impossibly addictive tale of tragic romance that pulls back the curtain on Edgar Alan Poe and Frances Osgood. Highly recommended.

Lynn Cullen | Gallery Books | Novel Published 2013

Copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for review