The Lady of Glenwith Grange

by Wilkie Collins

Ida Welwyn promises her dying mother that she will always look after her younger sister, Rosamond. Against Ida's better instincts, Rosamond marries Baron Franval whom she meets in Paris...

(Contains: The Lady of Glenwith Grange, Mad Monkton, The Dream Woman, Mr Lepel and the Housekeeper, The Dead Hand, A Terribly Strange Bed)

Genres: Short Stories, Gothic, Classics, British Literature

158 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1856

About the author

Wilkie Collins was an English novelist and playwright, best known for The Woman in White (1860), an early sensation novel, and The Moonstone (1868), a pioneering work of detective fiction. Born to landscape painter William Collins and Harriet Geddes, he spent part of his childhood in Italy and France, learning both languages. Initially working as a tea merchant, he later studied law, though he never practiced. His literary career began with Antonina (1850), and a meeting with Charles Dickens in 1851 proved pivotal. The two became close friends and collaborators, with Collins contributing to Dickens' journals and co-writing dramatic works.
Collins' success peaked in the 1860s with novels that combined suspense with social critique, including No Name (1862), Armadale (1864), and The Moonstone, which established key elements of the modern detective story. His personal life was unconventional—he openly opposed marriage and lived with Caroline Graves and her daughter for much of his life, while also maintaining a separate relationship with Martha Rudd, with whom he had three children.
Plagued by gout, Collins became addicted to laudanum, which affected both his health and later works. Despite declining quality in his writing, he remained a respected figure, mentoring younger authors and advocating for writers' rights. He died in 1889 and was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery. His legacy endures through his influential novels, which laid the groundwork for both sensation fiction and detective literature.

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25⭐
Ida Welwyn whom the locals call the Lady of Glenwith Grange promised her ill and dying mother that she will always look after her younger sister, Rosamond. Against Ida's better instincts, Rosamond marries Baron Franval whom she meets in Paris. Sometime later a French police agent comes to England and exposes the Baron as an impostor called Monbrun and he is killed while trying to escape. Rosamond dies of shock after giving birth to a baby girl. The girl is mentally challenged leaving the daughter to be brought up by the reclusive Ida at Glenwith Grange. Quite a sad but interesting tale.

[Elizabeth Choi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sensation fiction in short story form, loved it!