Zola's first major work, the naturalistic novel "Thérèse Raquin," is a miserable tale of miserable people engaging in murder, adultery, selfishness, and passion in 19th century France. The title character, unhappily married to her hypochondriac cousin, starts an affair with an artist who has run out of money for prostitutes. Thérèse and her lover believe their road to happiness is paved with the dead body of her husband, but it is not as smooth a road as they had hoped...
ISBN 978-1-58977-037-9
Molière & Co. #5