Karla B. (gaslight) - , reviewed on 6/2/2009 + 145 more book reviews

An unbelievably fast read! Novelization of the sensational (at the time) 1852 divorce case between the famous tragedian Edwin Forrest and his wife, Catherine Sinclair. Each charged the other with adultery, and all kinds of lurid details and accusations of brothels, orgy parties, abortions etc. were all dragged out for avid public consumption. Most of the book is the court transcript altered by the author for readability & brevity, but the primary document feel oddly is more evocative and compelling than if it had been translated into a prose narrative. Added to the story outside the courtroom drama is the romantic travails of one of the reporters covering the event and the rising women's liberation movement & how Catherine Sinclair's predicament touched a nerve in a nation beginning to grapple with the thorny issue.

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