Louisa May Alcott's Lurid Side

Something on the order of thirty years ago, my brother gave me an anthology of Alcott focusing on her lesser known, darker writings.  Short stories and novellas of deceit, danger, seduction, and even drug use, I was fascinated by the revelation-to-me that Victorian literature contained anything but fainting, repressed heroines and priggish or brooding males.  Following on the heels of recent forays into The Mysteries of Udolpho (yet unfinished, so stay tuned in case I come back with a review or other response to that reading; though, so far, it is nothing but a sentimental and extraordinarily wordy - even to *me* - travelogue), Stoker, and The Monk, A Romance, Alcott's Behind a Mask is hardly the sternest stuff, but it has the charm of being, if formulaic, perfectly *believable* at least.  Melodramatic and probably over-familiar to a modern reader, but in strictest terms of human behavior, recognizable.

One of the nicer touches of Alcott's writing is to present a character who might appear shallow or undeveloped, and to endow them, if not with depth, at least with dimension.  The motivations are dynamic, even as the action may seem quaint or perhaps stagy (yes, that is spelled correctly without the E; I was a theater major and am a writer, trust yourself in my bloggerly hands).  The endings, even when it's possible they might not satisfy certain expectations or even preferences, are plastic, not predictable or boring.

Linguistically, Alcott's wit is energizing, and her language provides good momentum at times.  Her tendency to start in media res, particularly in dialogue, challenges but crackles, and the action, while slow to modern eyes, is loaded with tension.  The very deliberation of its unfolding can ratchet up the power.  Above all, most of the thrillers or darker stories as they're usually called, are not extremely long.  "Behind A Mask" can be read in two or three lunch hours, and some of the other stories are good for one sitting - so trying one or two doesn't rob much life away.  Give Alcott's ghastly side a try, and let me know what you think!