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Community Corner

Historical fiction author Lynn Cullen at FoxTale

FoxTale Book Shoppe welcomes back author Lynn Cullen with her latest historical fiction novel, Mrs. Poe, on Tuesday, October 15th at 6:30pm.  Mrs. Poe was recently an Oprah Pick of the Week selection and has garnered great reviews.  This is a free event and both writers and readers are welcome. Cullen will discuss Mrs. Poe, take questions, sign books purchased at FoxTale and take photos.

A writer and his demons. A woman and her desires. A wife and her revenge . . . 

Inspired by literature’s most haunting love triangle, award-winning author Lynn Cullen delivers a pitch-perfect rendering of Edgar Allan Poe, his mistress’s tantalizing confession, and his wife’s frightening obsession . . . in this “intelligent, sexy, and utterly addictive” (M. J. Rose) new masterpiece of historical fiction. 

1845: New York City is a sprawling warren of gaslit streets and crowded avenues, bustling with new immigrants and old money, optimism and opportunity, poverty and crime. Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” is all the rage—the success of which a struggling poet like Frances Osgood can only dream. As a mother trying to support two young children after her husband’s cruel betrayal, Frances jumps at the chance to meet the illustrious Mr. Poe at a small literary gathering, if only to help her fledgling career. Although not a great fan of Poe’s writing, she is nonetheless overwhelmed by his magnetic presence— and the surprising revelation that he admires her work. 

What follows is a flirtation, then a seduction, then an illicit affair . . . and with each clandestine encounter, Frances finds herself falling slowly and inexorably under the spell of her mysterious, complicated lover. But when Edgar’s frail wife Virginia insists on befriending Frances as well, the relationship becomes as dark and twisted as one of Poe’s tales. And like those gothic heroines whose fates are forever sealed, Frances begins to fear that deceiving Mrs. Poe may be as impossible as cheating death itself. 

FoxTale Book Shoppe is located at 105 E. Main Street in the same center as Vingenzo's, adjacent to the Woodstock City Park gazebo. Phone: 770-516-9989.

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