Mrs Ross

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The still unidentified novelist Mrs Ross , known only by her surname, published a rush of titles—seven—between 1811 and 1816. Her work is racy, highly-coloured, and heavily moralised. Later works once listed as hers have now been re-attributed to Elizabeth B. Lester .

Milestones

By October 1811

Mrs Ross , a novelist about whom nothing is known except her works, published anonymously with the Minerva Press her apparently earliest book, The Cousins; or, A Woman's Promise and a Lover's Vow.
Garside, Peter et al., editors. The English Novel 1770-1829. Oxford University Press, 2000, 2 vols.
2: 354

By October 1816

MR published, with her name and reference to earlier titles, The Balance of Comfort; or the Old Maid and Married Woman. A Novel; the title-page said 1817.
Garside, Peter et al., editors. The English Novel 1770-1829. Oxford University Press, 2000, 2 vols.
2: 452

Writing

Novels

MR 's six titles published between 1811 and 1816 represent her entire oeuvre since her work has been disentangled by scholar Peter Garside from that of Elizabeth B. Lester . MR was well read, and sought to raise the status of the novel by using literary quotations for title-pages and chapter headings. She behaves like a professional in publishing with her name and lists of previous titles, but offers no personal details. Her racy third-person narratives (which often double as novels of ideas) open in medias res; her gripping denouements are often heavily moralistic. She uses large casts of characters, complicated plots, vivid dialogue in a wide range of styles, and, often, skilfully created fashionable settings. Despite a weakness for melodrama she retains an eye for telling and convincing detail. She is not mealy-mouthed, nor is she afraid to report on sexual irregularity.