Winifred Power. 3 vols. (Bentley and Son.)—This is a well-told
story, but, it must be owned, not a particularly attractive one. The first volume introduces us to two particularly mean people, who both of them look a great deal better than they are. John Hatherley is a dignified, even stately, man, who has the reputation of being some- thing of a student and a virtuoso, but whose life is a falsehood throughout; and Mary his sister, a beautiful woman, whose loveliness hides an utterly selfish heart. The writer, in tracing the history of these two, certainly keeps to the maxim " quails ab incepto." They are consistent in their falsehood and selfishness to the end. A good deal of art is shown in the development of their story, and the nemesis which overtakes them is quite satisfactory. But it will readily be understood that the narrative in which these are two of the principal characters may sometimes be scarcely attractive. The Dallas family makes a good series of sketches. The father who never succeeds, but who never thinks that he can be blamed for his failures ; the mother who sees in her jam-pots the consolation and remedy for all human sorrows and ills ; the kindly, indolent son, and the daughter with her spirit of restless intrigue, are all vigorous and natural figures. The story of Martha Freaks is a piece of genuine tragedy, the closing scene of which is conceived with true dignity. Winifred herself is a bright creation, and her love-story is a pleasing contrast to its somewhat dreary surroundings.
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