A rich blend of suspense, social history, and passion, Megan Chance delivers a powerfully written page- turner about a woman's desperate struggle to escape the confines of her time, class, and gender. Young Mrs. Lucy Carleton is the daughter of one of the oldest andwealthiest families in 1880s New York City. William Carleton is Lucy's un-pedigreed, nouveau riche husband. Problems arise when Lucy becomes increasingly uncomfortable with the prudish manners and paternalistic dependencies that define the wives of New York society. Lucy longs to break away and give free rein to her more bohemian soul, but her ambitious husband and domineering father are determined that she learn to conform to the mores of her social circle. Enter Dr. Victor Seth, the controversial and pioneering neurologist whom William hires to try to 'cure' Lucy of her perceived 'nervous disorder.' Seth's groundbreaking methods of hypnosis lead Lucy to unforeseen and shocking experiences and set readers on a path through one of the most riveting works of historical fiction in recent memory.
An Inconvenient Wife
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From Publishers Weekly
In this gripping historical, Chance (Susannah Morrow) exposes the horrors women faced in late 19th-century New York when they dared to show passion of any kind or repudiate society's norms. Highborn Lucy Carelton suffers from a common female disorder, "hysteria": its symptoms are headaches, excitable reactions and feelings of claustrophobia. Her cold-hearted, nouveau riche husband, William, determined to find her a cure, brings her to several specialists, who recommend everything from an ovariotomy to several months of confinement in a private asylum. At their wits' ends, the Careltons come to the renowned Dr. Victor Seth, a controversial specialist in the new field of neurology, who uses a combination of hypnosis and electrotherapy to cure his patients. Chance ratchets up the tension when Victor and Lucy's patient/doctor relationship crosses the line into something more intimate and intriguing, as Lucy's horrifying childhood and loveless marriage are brought to light in her therapy. The author showcases the class prejudices inherent in New York's high society in the 1880s and aptly depicts the stifling life a woman had to accept. It becomes clear that the healthier and more independent Lucy is, the more threatened and alienated her husband becomes, and the resulting fallout is catastrophic. The role of the unconscious mind and its impact on conscious behavior is explored in depth here, and Chance ends this lightning-paced narrative with a clever twist underscoring the risks one woman takes to be her own person.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
In this wholly absorbing historical novel, Mrs. Lucy Carelton, who comes from one of the wealthiest and most prominent families in 1880s New York City, has been completely undone by her nerves. Her ambitious husband, a nouveau riche stockbroker, drags her from one doctor to another in search of a cure that will allow her to fulfill her many social obligations without giving in to hysteria. They think they have found the solution in charismatic neurologist Victor Seth, a champion of a relatively new procedure called hypnotism. Seth sets about freeing Lucy from the social constraints that have made her so unhappy, encouraging her to pursue her artistic talents and explore her sexuality. Seth convinces himself that his techniques, including his handy way with an electrotherapy wand, are all in the name of science, but even he is unprepared for the new Lucy who emerges--a passionate, calculating, amoral creature of large appetites. Chance's straightforward prose and over-the-top plotting effectively combine in this diabolically clever, thoroughly entertaining take on women's liberation. Joanne Wilkinson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Hardcover
Nashville City Paper BookClub Column - May 27, 2004
An Inconvenient Wife by Megan Chance (Warner Books) is ideal for devotees of historical fiction. Lucy Carleton wants to be an asset to her husband in society but instead becomes dependent on something only Dr. Victor Seth can cure - a plot perfect for fans of both Edith Wharton and Nora Roberts.
Saralee Terry Woods is President of BookMan/BookWoman Books in Nashville, and Larry D. Woods is an attorney
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
This book is what I imagine would have happened to Rose (Titanic) if she had married Cal (the "bad guy")and gone on to suffer the marriage/life restrictions of her era and class. It is very well-written in first-person and occurs in Victorian New York. Lucy suffers from "hysteria," a common diagnosis of female neuroses in that time, and her socially-conscious husband takes her to the new doctor in town, Dr. Victor Seth. Dr. Seth's treatments and ensuing relationship with Lucy create interesting emotional dilemmas for Lucy, her husband and Dr. Seth. The story and plot were original, absorbing and shocking: womens' health issues were not treated back then as they are today! I highly recommend this book if you seek a change from the "cookie-cutter" variety of historical fiction or romance novels.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.4 out of 5 stars
72 reviews
69 of 72 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
1800's New York...
Sep 20 2005
By Mercedes L. Johnmeyer
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This was a really good book set in NYC in 1885. A time when women were allowed no freedoms, and her place was to see to the house, the servants, and her husband. This is Lucy Carlton's story. A woman who was born into wealth and privilege, bred to be the epitome of high-class and high society. Lucy marries William Carlton, a stock-broker who is not of her class, but makes enough money for the upper-class folks that they seemingly except him.
Lucy struggles with fits of hysteria, and frequent headaches, and is absent or leaves early from many social gatherings. William has taken her to doctor after doctor, and nothing seems to be working...untill she starts seeing Dr. Victor Seth. Dr. Seth is a doctor of neurology, something the folks of 1885 have never heard of before. No one knows what to think of his treatments of hypnotism, but the therapy is working wonders for Lucy...for the most part.
Dr. Seth proves to be the best and worst thing to happen to Lucy. While the hysteria fits have ended, new problems start plaguing her. She finds herself doing and feeling things that are totally foreign to her, and make William feel threatened. In the end, Lucy and William's life together will never be the same, and lies and scandal hit the high society of NYC.
Overall a great read...the ending was excellent, something I never would of expected, and the descriptions of the time period were wonderful. The clothes, the houses, the way of life for the most important citizens of NYC, and the limitations on women of the day. I definitely won't think twice about picking up another book from this author!
Lucy struggles with fits of hysteria, and frequent headaches, and is absent or leaves early from many social gatherings. William has taken her to doctor after doctor, and nothing seems to be working...untill she starts seeing Dr. Victor Seth. Dr. Seth is a doctor of neurology, something the folks of 1885 have never heard of before. No one knows what to think of his treatments of hypnotism, but the therapy is working wonders for Lucy...for the most part.
Dr. Seth proves to be the best and worst thing to happen to Lucy. While the hysteria fits have ended, new problems start plaguing her. She finds herself doing and feeling things that are totally foreign to her, and make William feel threatened. In the end, Lucy and William's life together will never be the same, and lies and scandal hit the high society of NYC.
Overall a great read...the ending was excellent, something I never would of expected, and the descriptions of the time period were wonderful. The clothes, the houses, the way of life for the most important citizens of NYC, and the limitations on women of the day. I definitely won't think twice about picking up another book from this author!
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great story
Sep 10 2004
By Annie
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Lucy always wanted to be free to be her own woman but as she was being raised by her father, he buried her spirit by making Lucy give up anything that was important to her... religion, poetry, and painting. Once she was married, her husband did the same thing because he wanted a proper woman who acted the way a woman of the upper class should act. With no way to live out her dreams, Lucy suffered from hysteria and was not able to conceive a child. William sent her to many doctors to help her but nobody could until Victor Seth came into the picture. He was a neurologist that used hypnosis to help women with nerve problems. His treatment was unkown and criticized, but they were willing to try as a last resort before sending Lucy to the asylum. Victor made great strides with the treatment of Lucy and in the process they became involved with each other. Lucy was cured, but then she became an "inconvenience" to William because he could no longer control her. When William found out what was going on between Lucy and Victor he sent her away against her wishes which brought on a chain of events that has serious repercussions.
I found Megan Chance when she published Susannah Morrow and I really enjoyed it so I figured I would try An Inconvenient Wife too. Megan is a very talented author that has the rare ability to bring you into a story and keep you there right to the end.
I found Megan Chance when she published Susannah Morrow and I really enjoyed it so I figured I would try An Inconvenient Wife too. Megan is a very talented author that has the rare ability to bring you into a story and keep you there right to the end.
20 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating Psychological -Historical Tale
April 16 2004
By A Customer
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This book is what I imagine would have happened to Rose (Titanic) if she had married Cal (the "bad guy")and gone on to suffer the marriage/life restrictions of her era and class. It is very well-written in first-person and occurs in Victorian New York. Lucy suffers from "hysteria," a common diagnosis of female neuroses in that time, and her socially-conscious husband takes her to the new doctor in town, Dr. Victor Seth. Dr. Seth's treatments and ensuing relationship with Lucy create interesting emotional dilemmas for Lucy, her husband and Dr. Seth. The story and plot were original, absorbing and shocking: womens' health issues were not treated back then as they are today! I highly recommend this book if you seek a change from the "cookie-cutter" variety of historical fiction or romance novels.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 72 reviews
4.4 out of 5 stars
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