Harriet Ogilvy is a young woman with a small fortune and a mental disability, making her the ideal target for the handsome and scheming Lewis Oman. After winning Harriet's love, Lewis, with the help of his brother and mistress, sets in motion a plan of unspeakable cruelty and evil to get his hands on her money. With consummate artistry, Elizabeth Jenkins transforms the bare facts of this case from the annals of Victorian England's Old Bailey into an absolutely spine-chilling exploration of the depths of human depravity.
Based on the real-life 1877 case of Harriet Staunton, "Harriet" (1934) was a bestseller and a major critical success, beating Evelyn Waugh's "A Handful of Dust" to win the Prix Femina. This edition features a new afterword by Dr. Catherine Pope.
"Like a cold hand clutching at the heart." - "Observer"
"It is superb. Every word grips." - "Manchester Evening News"
"So exciting that I could hardly read it." - James Agate, "Daily Express"
"Everything she writes spells for me an enchantment that makes sober criticism next to impossible." Gerald Bullett, "Time and Tide"