Kate Clephane has lived in exile in France since leaving her husband and infant daughter. She is being called back to New York by her now adult daughter to attend her daughter's wedding. Complicating already complicated matters her daughter is engaged to her one time lover Chris Fenno, a man who cannot be trusted, and worse yet Kate is still deeply in love with him.
A novel of scandal and shame and the upper class.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Opening on the French Riviera among a motley community of American expatriates, The Mother's Recompense tells the story of Kate Clephane and her reluctant return to New York society after being exiled years before for abandoning her husband and infant daughter. Oddly enough, Kate has been summoned back by that same daughter, Anne, now fully grown and intent on marrying Chris Fenno, a war hero, dilettante, and social opportunist. Chris' questionable intentions toward her daughter are, however, the least of Kate's worries since she was once, and still is, deeply in love with him. Kate's moral quandary and the ensuing drama evoke comparison with Oedipus and Hamlet and lead to an ending that startled the mores of the day.
Edith Wharton was the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize, for The Age of Innocence. Born in 1862 into one of New York's older and richer families, she was educated in New York and abroad. Her works include Ethan Frome, The House of Mirth, Old New York, The Reef, and Madame de Treymes and Other Stories. As a keen observer and chronicler of society, she is without peer. Edith Wharton died in France in 1937.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
£ 28.31 shipping from U.S.A. to United Kingdom
Destination, rates & speedsSeller: Polly's Books, Grand Rapids, MI, U.S.A.
Board book. Condition: Used: Good. A nice copy with a tight and square binding. Hardcovers are very good. Text is clean but has mildly yellowed. Dust jacket is good but has mild edge wear. Careful packaging and fast shipping. We recommend EXPEDITED MAIL for even faster delivery. Seller Inventory # 32444
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Black Tree Books, Davenport Center, NY, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. PREVIOUS OWNER NAME ON FLY. LIGHT SHELF WEAR. MINIMAL READING WEAR. TIGHT BINDING. Seller Inventory # 5193
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Dorley House Books, Inc., Hagerstown, MD, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. dj w/lite wear; 272 clean, unmarked pages. Seller Inventory # 079472
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: funyettabooks, Bloomington, MN, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. Clean and tight and square. Sharp corners. Appears unread. White pages. Originally published in 1925. Gray boards with gold lettering on the purple spine. Book Club Edition. The dust jacket has a little shelfwear with a closed tear at the top edge of the front panel and another at the top edge of the back panel near the spine that has creased. No price listed on the jacket. The jacket is in new mylar. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Fiction. Seller Inventory # 047120
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Mark Henderson, Olathe, KS, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. Book. Seller Inventory # 047643
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, PA, U.S.A.
board_book. Condition: Good. HARDCOVER edition includes author photograph, review slip, and promotional material Torn/worn dj. Good hardcover with some shelfwear; may have previous owner's name inside. Standard-sized. Seller Inventory # mon0000149356
Quantity: 1 available