CONSTANCE

Cantrell occupies herself with the classic trio of poetry, beauty and tragedy in this promising debut novel set in New York City. Morgan Clifford is a recently widowed editor at the venerable publishing house of Peabody & Simms. Years of watching glittering literary careers being created for mediocre writers by "the metallic maw of the publicity machine" have left her disillusioned and frustrated, but when the work of a mysterious and exceptional young poet, Constance Chamberlain, appears on her desk, it reignites her love for literature and life. Cantrell draws an entrancing character in Constance, who is at once fiercely talented, strikingly beautiful and appealingly old-fashioned. When she takes Morgan into her confidence to divulge a consuming love affair with a prominent (and married) businessman, her delicate reserve yields to reveal astute insight and unwavering passion. Constance's poems are interspersed throughout the narrative, as if to test Morgan's suggestion that Constance circumvent the publishing industry's reluctance to publish unknown poets by weaving her poetry into a novel. This approach is occasionally marred by the poetry itself; it is hard to remain convinced of Constance's extraordinary attributes when her work is so pedestrian. With Constance's untimely death, Morgan is forced to reexamine some of the myths that she built around the poet. It appears that Constance was both more tormented and less isolated than she seemed, which puts a refreshing spin on what threatened to be a predictable conclusion. Even the posthumous publication of her poems by Peabody & Simms is less triumphant than expected, as Morgan realizes that being elevated to the status of Emily Dickinson's editor "had not been the point at all." Cantrell writes with careful precision, and despite the flimsy poetry, Constance's story is subtle and touching. (July 16)