19 NOVEMBER 1836, Page 20

The Forsaken, a novel, is compounded of the usual improbable

mysteries and cross-purposes, the unlikely loves, and unlikelier distresses, which have formed the staple in trade of the common run of novels ever since novels were written. In the catastrophe, the author has somewhat improved upon his predecessors ; being ess blissfull than many, and less bloody than a few : his hero and heroine, his lady-villains, and the generality of his other cha- racters, strike us as being worse—unless present impressions are stronger than past. The only passages in the tale with any touch of humanity, are the sketches of Mr. Darby Dudley, the Irish agent, and his family ; but these are at once literal and exagge- rated.