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SHE CAME FROM A CITY OF PLEASURE TO A PLANTATION OF HELL
Beautiful, talented young actress Ellen Price was the toast of old New Orleans when she fell under the spell of handsome, aristocratic Phillip Baudier. She ignored the rumors of Phillip's perverse past and the scandalous stories of his secret life. She abandoned herself to the passion aroused in her, and came as his bride to his great plantation of Rothby.
It was on this vast and isolated estate that Ellen learned of the devilish horror that lay under the golden glow of Southern life - and of the satanic curse that rose from the swamp of evil on which Rothby stood in all its dazzling splendor and damning corruption...
Beautiful, talented young actress Ellen Price was the toast of old New Orleans when she fell under the spell of handsome, aristocratic Phillip Baudier. She ignored the rumors of Phillip's perverse past and the scandalous stories of his secret life. She abandoned herself to the passion aroused in her, and came as his bride to his great plantation of Rothby.
It was on this vast and isolated estate that Ellen learned of the devilish horror that lay under the golden glow of Southern life - and of the satanic curse that rose from the swamp of evil on which Rothby stood in all its dazzling splendor and damning corruption...
- GenresHistorical Romance
448 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
1 person is currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Marilyn Ross
136 books61 followersWilliam Edward Daniel Ross, W. E. Daniel "Dan" Ross (born 1912) is a bestselling Canadian novelist from Saint John, New Brunswick who wrote over 300 books in a variety of genres and under a variety of mostly female pseudonyms such as Laura Frances Brooks, Lydia Colby, Rose Dana, Jan Daniels, Olin Ross, Diane Randall, Clarissa Ross, Leslie Ames, Ruth Dorset, Ann Gilmer, Jane Rossiter, Dan Ross, Dana Ross, Marilyn Ross, Dan Roberts, and W.E.D. Ross. As Marilyn Ross he wrote popular Gothic fiction including a series of novels about the vampire Barnabas Collins based on the American TV series Dark Shadows (1966-71).
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 15, 2022
DNF @ roughly 60%. Because I just do not care.
The longer Ross books are generally all over the place in terms of plot & genre; sometimes this makes them amusingly OTT, other times it makes them schizo & shallow. This one, alas, goes nowhere & does nothing with the plot, making it both shallow AND dull. We hear a lot about how Junius Booth is a genius, & how theatre is cool, & how excessive drinking is bad, & how slaveowners are bad, & how racism is bad, & how dueling is bad, & how Ellen isn’t a Southern lady so don’t you dare treat her like one with your shoddy southern mores! 😱 Zzzz. The characters have all the depth of potato chips & the plot spins its wheels with only brief flashes of Something Happening (catfight in a brothel, Ellen being accosted in the bathtub, a ghost on the property) before reverting to the same wheel-spinning mire o’ dullness.
…Hence, I simply don’t GAF & am moving on to (hopefully) better reads.
The longer Ross books are generally all over the place in terms of plot & genre; sometimes this makes them amusingly OTT, other times it makes them schizo & shallow. This one, alas, goes nowhere & does nothing with the plot, making it both shallow AND dull. We hear a lot about how Junius Booth is a genius, & how theatre is cool, & how excessive drinking is bad, & how slaveowners are bad, & how racism is bad, & how dueling is bad, & how Ellen isn’t a Southern lady so don’t you dare treat her like one with your shoddy southern mores! 😱 Zzzz. The characters have all the depth of potato chips & the plot spins its wheels with only brief flashes of Something Happening (catfight in a brothel, Ellen being accosted in the bathtub, a ghost on the property) before reverting to the same wheel-spinning mire o’ dullness.
…Hence, I simply don’t GAF & am moving on to (hopefully) better reads.
February 6, 2023
This novel had just too many weaknesses. The author couldn't seem to make up his mind if this was to be a romance, gothic/suspense, historical novel about mid 19thc theatre, or socially relevant tale against slavery and discrimination. Add a little cholera and yellow fever epidemic into the mix and you've got quite a concoction and a bit of a mess!
Granted, it was entertaining, and included some historical figures, such as actors Edwin Forrest and Junius Brutus Booth. But it was also haphazard, as the h, Ellen can't seem to settle her heart anywhere for too long. She first falls for Harry, the manager at the theatre where she, her father and her sister perform, but since there's no great welcome for a biracial man in 1830's New Orleans, he heads north for a better life. Ellen claims she can't go with him because she doesn't want to hold him back, but more likely that was an excuse for her ambiguous feelings about his racial identity.
Instead, she marries Philli0p, an older man who can gives her material security and a son, but no happiness. They're only married a short time when she finds out he has set up one of his attractive female slaves as his mistress and resents Ellen for resenting this. But her anger dissipates when he dies and leaves her half his massive estate. There's also her friendship with two attractive men to keep her feminine juices flowing. First, there's Bob, a reporter/abolitionist, who once loved her sister, Mary (who dumped him for James, the theatre owner, then dumped him for Edwin Forrest) but then transferred that love to Ellen, but she keeps him in the friend zone. Then, there's Paul, a dedicated doctor married to his career, who's content to just be friends.
Then, there's Charles, Paul's partner in his practice, who becomes Ellen's fiancé, in what has to be the longest (not to mention dullest) engagement on record. He makes so many excuses for putting off the big day, yet at the same time declares his unchanging love and devotion, Ellen doesn't know what to think, yet swears she loves him, though that doesn't prevent her from getting the hots for Chris, a charming gambler, who nearly gets her in trouble with the law, what a prize! Yet, she swears she loves Charles, but then again, Chris makes her heart go pitter patter, but then again, Charles......
Meanwhile, she's dismayed to learn that Harry got married and has a family. WTF!!! She was married to (and had a son with) one man, is engaged to another, has the hots for a third, while a fourth has the hots for her, and she's all hurt and bothered because Harry found someone to love??? Talk about nerve!! Not to mention selfish!!
And guess what? When she sees him again, she starts to wonder (despite being engaged to Charles and horny for Chris) if perhaps she's really in love with Harry!!!! If they gave a "Fickle Woman" award, she'd win, hands down!!
The best part of the book is when Ellen helps out at a makeshift hospital during the fever epidemic, and while most of the fine ladies in the city wouldn't deem to help out, a local madam and her working girls gladly volunteer their services and become excellent nurses!
The worst part of the book was a stupid "ghost" story, with an explanation so lame (not to mention STUPID), that a real ghost would have been preferable!
To top this mix off with a sour cherry, when Charles FINALLY sets a date, he dumps her days before their wedding, because he's discovered a family connection he just can't handle! (It's nothing incestuous, just some more stupidity.) However, Chris arrives in town! YIPPIE!!!
Oh, BROTHER!!!!!
My recommendation: there's plenty of book fish in the literary sea, don't waste time with this rotten tuna!
Granted, it was entertaining, and included some historical figures, such as actors Edwin Forrest and Junius Brutus Booth. But it was also haphazard, as the h, Ellen can't seem to settle her heart anywhere for too long. She first falls for Harry, the manager at the theatre where she, her father and her sister perform, but since there's no great welcome for a biracial man in 1830's New Orleans, he heads north for a better life. Ellen claims she can't go with him because she doesn't want to hold him back, but more likely that was an excuse for her ambiguous feelings about his racial identity.
Instead, she marries Philli0p, an older man who can gives her material security and a son, but no happiness. They're only married a short time when she finds out he has set up one of his attractive female slaves as his mistress and resents Ellen for resenting this. But her anger dissipates when he dies and leaves her half his massive estate. There's also her friendship with two attractive men to keep her feminine juices flowing. First, there's Bob, a reporter/abolitionist, who once loved her sister, Mary (who dumped him for James, the theatre owner, then dumped him for Edwin Forrest) but then transferred that love to Ellen, but she keeps him in the friend zone. Then, there's Paul, a dedicated doctor married to his career, who's content to just be friends.
Then, there's Charles, Paul's partner in his practice, who becomes Ellen's fiancé, in what has to be the longest (not to mention dullest) engagement on record. He makes so many excuses for putting off the big day, yet at the same time declares his unchanging love and devotion, Ellen doesn't know what to think, yet swears she loves him, though that doesn't prevent her from getting the hots for Chris, a charming gambler, who nearly gets her in trouble with the law, what a prize! Yet, she swears she loves Charles, but then again, Chris makes her heart go pitter patter, but then again, Charles......
Meanwhile, she's dismayed to learn that Harry got married and has a family. WTF!!! She was married to (and had a son with) one man, is engaged to another, has the hots for a third, while a fourth has the hots for her, and she's all hurt and bothered because Harry found someone to love??? Talk about nerve!! Not to mention selfish!!
And guess what? When she sees him again, she starts to wonder (despite being engaged to Charles and horny for Chris) if perhaps she's really in love with Harry!!!! If they gave a "Fickle Woman" award, she'd win, hands down!!
The best part of the book is when Ellen helps out at a makeshift hospital during the fever epidemic, and while most of the fine ladies in the city wouldn't deem to help out, a local madam and her working girls gladly volunteer their services and become excellent nurses!
The worst part of the book was a stupid "ghost" story, with an explanation so lame (not to mention STUPID), that a real ghost would have been preferable!
To top this mix off with a sour cherry, when Charles FINALLY sets a date, he dumps her days before their wedding, because he's discovered a family connection he just can't handle! (It's nothing incestuous, just some more stupidity.) However, Chris arrives in town! YIPPIE!!!
Oh, BROTHER!!!!!
My recommendation: there's plenty of book fish in the literary sea, don't waste time with this rotten tuna!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews