The Medea Complex

June 15, 2015
As an indictment of the treatment of women in Victorian England, Roberts's first novel works very well; as an entertaining work of fiction, not so much. That the author is knowledgeable on the subject is made evident by the wealth of detail she provides in the story of Anne, Lady Stanbury, who wakes up confined to an asylum in 1885 England, apparently for killing her infant son. The narrative switches among the major characters, including Anne, her doctor, her maid, her husband, and her father. This is either a clever ploy, Ã la Rashomon, or a gimmick that distracts the reader who's trying to follow the story in some sort of linear fashion. And since not all the voices are truthful, there's a fair amount of confusion. Then there are the anachronisms, such as the man who signs a letter to his putative father thusly: "Yours Affectionately, Christopher Jordan. AkaâYour Loving Son." Still, Anne is a sympathetic enough heroine for readers to care about her fate.Agent: Stephanie Kip Rostan, Levine Greenberg Literary Agency.