Mrs. Poe

August 19, 2013
Cullen, whose previous novels have focused on obscure women from the past, such as Juana of Castile (Reign of Madness) and Sofonisba Anguissola (The Creation of Eve), now turns her attention to Frances Sargent Osgood, a mid-19th-century poet and children’s author who, some believe, was romantically involved with Edgar Allen Poe. As the novel opens in 1845, Poe is the toast of literary New York, having just published the sensationally successful poem “The Raven.” Meanwhile, Mrs. Osgood, recently spurned by her philandering artist husband, is under enormous pressure to publish her work and thereby provide for her two young daughters. At a series of literary salons (many featuring cameos by other famous names of Poe’s day), Mrs. Osgood and Poe develop a mutual attraction, as noticed not only by their peers but also by Poe’s young and fragile wife, Virginia. Virginia’s initially friendly overtures to her romantic rival become increasingly threatening, a nod to the macabre that seems unnecessary and gratuitous, as does the often-awkward insertion of research into the narrative. More successful is Cullen’s portrayal of Osgood as a literary woman attempting to make a name (and a living) for herself against the odds. Agent: Emma Sweeney, Emma Sweeney Agency.

Cullen's novel about Edgar Allan Poe is worth a listen, if only for narrator Eliza Foss's exquisite dramatic reading of Poe's "The Raven," which opens the story. Foss's narration continues strongly as she explores Poe's time in New York and his relationship with his wife through the eyes of the woman Cullen names as his mistress, the poet Frances Sargent Osgood. Foss captures not only Frances's desperation as she tries to support her children while her painter husband dallies with his portrait subjects but also her immense intelligence and the almost magnetic pull between her and Edgar. Cullen may be playing with history a bit, but Foss's narration entices listeners to play along. J.L.K. (c) AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine