The Hired Baby, with Other Stories and Social Sketches

Mary Mackay attempted to become a musician before she had a 'psychical experience' which led her to become a novelist. Under the name Marie Corelli, she wrote 28 romantic novels, gaining great popularity with tales and characters often criticized for their melodramatic, sentimental qualities. Her better-known works include Barabbas, The Sorrows of Satan, and A Romance of Two Worlds; they address religious themes in ways deemed simplistic by many readers.