The Spoils of Poynton

The Cambridge Edition of the Complete Fiction of Henry James provides, for the first time, a scholarly edition of a major writer whose work continues to be read, quoted, adapted and studied. This is the first full critical edition of James's first major novel after his unhappy venture into commercial theatre. The Spoils of Poynton marks a shift towards the representation of complex psychological states characteristic of his later fiction, telling a dramatic story about the fate of the beautiful artefacts lovingly collected by the widow Adela Gereth and her late husband. Who do they, should they, belong to? The novel describes with extraordinary delicacy an intense family feud arising from the competing claims of those close to Mrs Gereth, and the ordeal endured by the young and intelligent Fleda Vetch as she tries to resolve it. This edition features a substantial introduction, explanatory notes, textual variants, bibliography and appendices.