her parents, but her father still encourages her to marry. She has a circle of friends, socializing primarily with two sisters of a widower who proposes marriage to her. One day, itinerant worker Matthew Gurney rolls into town. He and Emmeline share a strong immediate attraction. Matthew proposes to her and Emmeline eagerly accepts. They marry, with Emmeline wearing her sister-in-law's wedding dress, and move into a house that they build themselves. When Emmeline's aunt visits after the wedding, she instantly recognizes Matthew and forces him to admit that he is 21 years old, not 26 as he originally claimed. At that moment, Emmeline realizes that she gave birth to a boy, not a girl, and that she has married her son. Her aunt tells her father, who immediately disowns her. Word quickly spreads throughout town. Matthew deserts Emmeline, who is soon excommunicated by the preacher at her church and encouraged to leave town. Emmeline spends the rest of her long life on the fringes of the town, ignored by all. She tries to subsist on what she can grow herself. Neglected as an old woman, she dies during a particularly harsh winter. Reception Emmeline received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews, which called it "A strange, in some ways difficult book--but a grave tale of lingering impact." Chicago Tribune reviewer Susan Fromberg Schaeffer drew comparisons to Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, calling it "a novel of rare knowledge and great power, masterfully told." References 1980 American novels Novels set in Maine Novels set in Massachusetts Kennebec County, Maine Lynn, Massachusetts Fiction set in 1839 Novels adapted into operas American historical novels Incest in fiction Simon & Schuster books