Synopses & Reviews
First published in 1902, The Wings of the Dove "represents the pinnacle of James's prose" (Louis Auchincloss). It is a classic example of James's meticulously designed morality tales of treachery and self-betrayal, as a young, naive American heiress becomes both the victim and redeemer of the scheming lovers who conspire to obtain her fortune. This is the definitive New York Edition, which first appeared in 1907, and includes the author's preface, new notes by James scholar Peter Walker, and a reading group guide.
About the Author
Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best novels of all timeSet amid the splendor of London drawing rooms and gilded Venetian palazzos, The Wings of the Dove is the story of Milly Theale, a naïve, doomed American heiress, and a pair of lovers, Kate Croy and Merton Densher, who conspire to obtain her fortune. In this witty tragedy of treachery, self-deception, and betrayal, Henry James weaves together three ill-fated and wholly human destinies unexpectedly linked by desire, greed, and salvation. As Amy Bloom writes in her Introduction, “The Wings of the Dove is a novel of intimacy. . . . [James] gives us passion, he gives us love in its terrible and enchanting forms.”