Rating: 
Summary: worth considering
Review: I spent over a year convincing myself that i needed to read this book (like someone else, i was supposed to read it in class, but we didn't get to it). Finally, I read it and I am very glad i did. Although you can figure the secret out pretty far in advance, the fact that the narrator/investigator spends the time trying to PROVE his solution to himself shows what a marvelous work this is. He doesn't go wildly off into the night telling anyone, he tries to get the lady to tell her husband of her own will. the slight touch of romance, and deep sense of justice and mystery lend this book to a long weekend's worth of reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Review the novel, or the edition?
Review: It's unfortunate that opinions regarding the story, Braddon's style, and/or Victorian novels in general make the little star rankings lower for this particular edition. In fact, the edition is quite good; the introduction is superb, the footnotes are very useful for those of us who easily forget our Classical references, and the appendices are chock full of relevant information. Like the story or not, this edition is wonderful.
Rating: 
Summary: small comfort to Wilkie Collins addicts..
Review: Lady Audley's Secret was written shortly after Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White, the novel which defined the era of "sensation novels" (..where mystery and suspense are piled on high). After exhausting Wilkie Collins's collection of major works I hungered for something which would leave me again in page-turning heaven. So off I went to read this first and most famous work of Mary Elizabeth Braddon.Lady Audley's Secret left me disappointed overall. Oh its story of deep secrets, cunning, and hunger for lower class individuals wanting a piece of the aristocracy pie is rather interesting; Wilkie Collins would have approved. But unlike Wilkie Collins, Ms. Braddon doesn't have the gift of writing rich prose. While certainly easy to read, Lady Audley's Secret feels "low calorie" compared to the sumptuous works of Wilkie Collins. It left me wanting more. Wilkie Collins addicts will find Lady Audley's secret to be nothing more than a mild diversion. For those who have not experienced the likes of The Woman in White ... what are you waiting for?!? However for those who find the works of Wilkie Collins to be overly complex and cumbersome, Lady Audley's Secret should make for a fun read on a rainy day.
Rating:
Summary: Not too shabby...
Review: Not the greatest thing ever written, but I don't think you can go wrong with this murder mystery. The only thing I think you should be warned about is that the mystery only encompasses maybe 2/3rds of the novel... there is a lot of build up and a lot of wind down, and although it won't be revealed here, I was disappointed with the ending. Anywho, what I *DID* enjoy was the way the main character (who doubled as the detective) didn't blindly solve his crimes, even once he'd come to a conclusion. He took the consideration and time to consider all the factors of the situation and how they would effect the people he loved, and made the right decision based on that. Kudos for a little self doubt!
Rating:
Summary: Pioneering sensational novel
Review: One of the most popular books of the 19th-century England and a still a strong page-turner today, this has all of the twists and false leads of a Wilkie Collins novel without his pretensions. Watch out for my pet theory when reading it:
Robert Audley's relation to George Talboys -- ambiguously gay? Not that there's anything wrong with that.
Rating:
Summary: A classic and delightful read for any century!
Review: One of the most widely read murder mysteries of the 19th century is still a worthwhile adventure today. Mary E. Braddon delivers a thoughtful masterpiece of suspense. After craftily engaging her reader, Braddon gives one the illusion of knowledge. We begin to believe that we know and understand the "secret" and are simply waiting for the mystery to unfold. Yet beware! We are not as knowing as we think, the text is not as simple as it appears. Full of exciting twists and unnerving psychological profiles, _Lady Audley's Secret_ is a must-read thriller! As a birdseye view of Victorian England, it is superb. As a literary lesson in character development, it is unmatched. As an intriguing, can't-put-it-down plot, it is excellent. In a word, it is timeless
Rating:
Summary: A Victorian Bestselling Novel That Still Fascinates Us
Review: The 1860s in England saw the boom of "sensation novels" which is best represented by the gripping thrillers "The Woman in White" and "The Moonstone," written by Wilkie Collins. Immediately after the success of the former one, Mary Elizabeth Braddon wrote "Lady Audley's Secret," which also became an instant bestseller, quickly making her a celebrity. But, in more than one sense, as you see later. The story of Braddon's book is clearly inspired by Collins's "The Woman in White" (especially by Laura's story), but it is quite unfair to call "Lady Audley" a poor imitation. (And remember, Collins's story is also said to be based on a French book recording actual crime cases). Lady Audley takes a more defying view on the Victorians, roles of women in particular, and that's the real reason she was such a "sensation," and is again getting our attention now. The story goes like this: Lucy, a governess without family, is loved by Sir Michael Audley, a rich landowner of Audley Court, Essex, and marries him to the chagrin of some people who look at her as an adventuress. No matter how people think, however, they are living happily. In the meanwhile, George Talboys, after his long, hard days in Australia searching for goldmine, finally comes back to London, after many years, with money to make his wife happy. But when he encountered his old friend Robert Audley, nephew of Sir Michael, he accidentally knows that his beloved wife is no longer alive. Those two seemingly unrelated events begin to get entangled after George's sudden missing. Robert starts his own investigation, as if beckoned by a fate, and he, collecting evidences, gradually comes to one inevitable conclusion. And ... let me say this first; "Lady Audley" is an absorbing book, but absorbing not in the way a good detective story is. The "secret" in point is, one often mistakes, NOT the secret you can easily discover in the early stage of the plot. (You must wait to see the nature of Lady's secret at the end of the book, which is still controversial.) The story is melodramatic and sometimes predictable, but the real virtue of the book is the portrait of the strong-willed heroine, who dares to challenge the social codes of women in Victorian era. The book is full of action that you might find in any potboilers, shocking for the comtemporary people, which includes: murder, arson, secret passage, blackmail, you name it. But the way Braddon handles them is always steady and well-controlled, and at some places they look unexpectedly modern, reading like a movie script, anticipating the cinematic treatment in the early 20th century (this had been made into films three times in silent-film days, and once on TV even in 2000) Her book has many flaws, surely, but should be never called dull. Mary Elizabeth Braddon, when she was working on this book, was living with John Maxwell, ambitious publisher in debt, and she was the main provider of income. While living together (and John was still married to another woman in asylum, which makes an interesting parallel with George Eliot), she wrote with a frantic speed. Through 1861-62, when she wrote "Lady Audley's Secret," -- and she was also writing for cheaper periodicals under false name! -- Braddon confesses that she wrote the Third Book (the final third part) of the "Lady Audley" in a fortnight. Considering the fact, the book is incredibly tight, and infallibly engaging.
Rating:
Summary: A Victorian Bestselling Novel That Still Fascinates Us
Review: The 1860s in England saw the boom of "sensation novels" which is best represented by the gripping thrillers "The Woman in White" and "The Moonstone," written by Wilkie Collins. Immediately after the success of the former one, Mary Elizabeth Braddon wrote "Lady Audley's Secret," which also became an instant bestseller, quickly making her a celebrity. But, in more than one sense, as you see later. The story of Braddon's book is clearly inspired by Collins's "The Woman in White" (especially by Laura's story), but it is quite unfair to call "Lady Audley" a poor imitation. (And remember, Collins's story is also said to be based on a French book recording actual crime cases). Lady Audley takes a more defying view on the Victorians, roles of women in particular, and that's the real reason she was such a "sensation," and is again getting our attention now. The story goes like this: Lucy, a governess without family, is loved by Sir Michael Audley, a rich landowner of Audley Court, Essex, and marries him to the chagrin of some people who look at her as an adventuress. No matter how people think, however, they are living happily. In the meanwhile, George Talboys, after his long, hard days in Australia searching for goldmine, finally comes back to London, after many years, with money to make his wife happy. But when he encountered his old friend Robert Audley, nephew of Sir Michael, he accidentally knows that his beloved wife is no longer alive. Those two seemingly unrelated events begin to get entangled after George's sudden missing. Robert starts his own investigation, as if beckoned by a fate, and he, collecting evidences, gradually comes to one inevitable conclusion. And ... let me say this first; "Lady Audley" is an absorbing book, but absorbing not in the way a good detective story is. The "secret" in point is, one often mistakes, NOT the secret you can easily discover in the early stage of the plot. (You must wait to see the nature of Lady's secret at the end of the book, which is still controversial.) The story is melodramatic and sometimes predictable, but the real virtue of the book is the portrait of the strong-willed heroine, who dares to challenge the social codes of women in Victorian era. The book is full of action that you might find in any potboilers, shocking for the comtemporary people, which includes: murder, arson, secret passage, blackmail, you name it. But the way Braddon handles them is always steady and well-controlled, and at some places they look unexpectedly modern, reading like a movie script, anticipating the cinematic treatment in the early 20th century (this had been made into films three times in silent-film days, and once on TV even in 2000) Her book has many flaws, surely, but should be never called dull. Mary Elizabeth Braddon, when she was working on this book, was living with John Maxwell, ambitious publisher in debt, and she was the main provider of income. While living together (and John was still married to another woman in asylum, which makes an interesting parallel with George Eliot), she wrote with a frantic speed. Through 1861-62, when she wrote "Lady Audley's Secret," -- and she was also writing for cheaper periodicals under false name! -- Braddon confesses that she wrote the Third Book (the final third part) of the "Lady Audley" in a fortnight. Considering the fact, the book is incredibly tight, and infallibly engaging.
Rating: 
Summary: An OK story, but lackluster characters
Review: The cover description of this novel grabbed my interest when I saw it in the bookstore, so I decided to give it a try. It's the first book I have struggled with in a while. And it's not because it's hard to read; far from it. The characters are, simply put, not interesting. I didn't care for a single one of them, not even the "detective" of the story, Robert Audley, or the "enchanting" and "mysterious" heroine herself, Lady Audley. There was some good bits of suspense, and a few bits of mystery, but because of the flat characters this really did little to compensate.
Rating:
Summary: A Forgotten Gem
Review: This book is a wonderful forgotten gem. Although it was written nearly half a century before, this book belongs on the shelf next to stories such as Du Maurier's "Rebecca." It is a mystery that takes place at a manor much like Manderly, but the characters are different and the reader wonders who is really the hero (or herione). Mary Elizabeth Bradden wrote her best for this book. In fact, the author always thought of this book as her favorite. I know it is one of mine.
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