The Thirteenth Tale (novel)
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First edition cover |
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Author | Diane Setterfield |
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Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Gothic, Suspense novel |
Publisher | Atria |
Released | September 12, 2006 |
Media type | Print (Hardback) & Audio book |
Pages | 416 pp |
ISBN | ISBN 0743298020 |
The Thirteenth Tale is a gothic suspense novel that was published in 2006. It was Diane Setterfield's debut novel.
Contents |
[edit] Plot introduction
Vida Winter, allegedly the most famous novelist in England, and quite possibly the world, has never been forthcoming when it comes to her past. Her entire life is a secret, and for fifty years reporters and biographers have attempted to discover the truth. With her health quickly fading, Ms. Winter hires an unknown, bookish biographer, Margaret Lea, to bear witness to the tragic story of the Angelfield family, their eccentric beginnings as well as their demise. Margaret, who has family secrets of her own, must unravel the mysteries of the past in order to reconcile not only Ms. Winter with her ghosts, but also Margaret with hers.
[edit] Characters
- Margaret Lea: the daughter of a bookstore owner who is asked to write Vida Winter's biography
- Vida Winter (aka Shadow): the famous writer who has eluded reporters as to her true past, and is now ready to reveal its secrets to Margaret
- Isabelle Angelfield: the younger of George Angelfield's two children, she gives birth to twins, Emmeline and Adeline
- Charlie Angelfield: Isabelle's older brother who has a dark passion and love for his sister
- Emmeline March: the less violent of Isabelle's girls
- Adeline March: the more violent of the twins
[edit] Reception
The novel became a New York Times #1 bestseller. [1]