SHADOW LOVERS: The Last Affairs of H.G. Wells

Although H.G. Wells (1866–1946) was possibly the first and certainly one of the greatest science fiction writers in history, anyone seeking evidence of his literary labors will not find it in this volume. Instead, journalist Lynn invites readers to consider Wells as a romantic figure who happened also to be a man of letters—a sort of 20th-century Byron. Quite unlike Byron, however, Wells is described as a "fat and homely, short and stocky man with [a] peculiarly high-pitched voice." Add to this the fact that the book only discusses Wells's conquests when he was between the ages of 66 and 70, and readers might reasonably expect Lynn's account to fall a few laces short of a bodice-ripper. But she is a gifted storyteller, and she somehow manages to capture the unaccountable charisma that made Wells (as he termed himself) a "Don Juan of the Intelligentsia." A world of international intrigue revolved around each of the three remarkable women (Baroness Moura Budberg, Constance Coolidge and the redoubtable Martha Gellhorn) Wells pursued in his later years, and Lynn, drawing on previously unpublished letters, tells their tales with great relish and considerable style. But with its limited focus, its tabloid intricacies and minutely rendered comings and goings, her book is likely to capture the attention only of true Wells devotees. The rest of the nation's readers can wait and hope that Lynn's keen eye will soon turn with equal gusto to a more broadly appealing subject. (Feb.)