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''Kathy Watson has achieved the rare combination of sensitive, meticulous research with readability'' - Virginia Rounding, Sunday Times

''Careful, intelligent, absorbing ... Watson tells Mary''s story in a sensible, matter-of-fact way, which makes it all the more moving, and the Lambs'' achievements all the more remarkable'' - Allan Massie, Scotsman

''Riveting ... Her story of this extraordinary relationship is surely one of the most bizarre and heart-rending imaginable, and offers an indelible portrait of two of literature''s most intriguing figures'' - Val Hennessy, Daily Mail

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A stunning biography of Mary Lamb, who murdered her mother with a knife before going on to write Tales From Shakespeare with her brother Charles

On 22 September 1796 Mary Lamb murdered her mother with a carving knife. However, she was neither imprisoned nor punished, but instead released into the care of her younger brother Charles.

They went on to share their home, friends and work for nearly forty years. They wrote the children''s classic Tales from Shakespeare together, ran a literary agency, and had a salon frequented by Coleridge, Wordsworth, Hazlitt and Godwin. However, the Lambs'' popularity existed in the shadow of Mary''s recurring bouts of mania and depression and she was incarcerated in a mental institution for several months of each year.

This memorable portrait of one of literature''s most romantic figures examines this extraordinary brother-sister relationship and, amidst the many contradictions and chaotic episodes of her life, uncovers the real Mary Lamb.