Six years before she wrote Little Women, Louisa May Alcott, in financial straits, entered "Pauline's Passion and Punishment," a novelette, in a newspaper contest. Not only did it win the $100 prize, but, published anonymously, it marked the first in the series of "blood & thunder tales" that would be her livelihood for years.

In Behind a Mask, editor Madeleine Stern introduces four Alcott thrillers: "Pauline's Passion and Punishment," "The Mysterious Key," "The Abbot's Ghost," and the title story, "Behind a Mask." First published in one volume in 1975, they are regarded as Alcott's finest work in this genre.

These stories are riveting, classic tales of betrayal, seduction, and murder. But this remarkable collection "also significantly deepens our understanding of one of the most tragically bright figures in American literature" (The Christian Science Monitor). Revealed in these pages is the other Louisa May Alcott, who painted portraits of the passionate, richly sexual femme fatale.

Condition: Pre-loved book. Mild yellowing of pages.

Format: Paperback
Year published: 2004
Pages: 281
Sub-genre: Thriller, short stories
Imprint: Perennial