Steamboat Gothic: Frances Parkinson Keyes

Set in post-Civil War Louisiana, a tale of revenge long plotted, truths glossed over and concealed, blackmail and its aftermath. Three generations are spanned - from the marriage of Clyde Batchelor, reformed river gambler, to the lovely widowed Lucy Page - to her grandson, Larry, who marries a French girl and brings her back to be chatelaine of the Steamboat Gothic mansion. Lucy found marriage with Clyde a challenge and a joy; the secret they concealed mainly deepened their devotion. But Lucy's spoiled son, Bushrod, uses it to drain Clyde to the point of bankruptcy. Lucy's daughter, Cary, schooled to extravagance and wealth, finds disillusionment of love a measure of inner strength and maturity. Regarded as a very well-researched story with intimate details of life at the time - the clothes, the food, the homes and the authentic local color as a Louisiana plantation comes to life.