As it turns out, Lady Audley actually has several secrets, and her husband's nephew Robert Audley uncovers them all in his quest to find his friend George Talboy, who has disappeared following a visit to the Audley estate. Bigamy, murder, arson, and secret identities make this one of the most well known examples of sensation fiction, which came into widespread popularity in England in the 1860s. Braddon's novel made so much money that it provided her with life-long income and its publisher was able to purchase an estate from his portion of the profits.
This is a fun book to read, although its ending is a little weak. The detective hero is charmingly portrayed and his transformation from a genial layabout to a dedicated and energetic investigator is believable. The anti-heroine Lady Audley resembles Thackery's Becky Sharp more than a bit, but is not nearly as interesting. The writing is suprisingly good, especially considering that the novel was written very quickly. Not Gothic at all, it is instead basically a detective story.
Recommended for those who enjoy Victorian novels and have run out of books by the big names and so are ready to visit the second tier.
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