Anna, a German mill-ownerâs daughter, marries a French aristocrat and moves to France. She discovers that her husband killed his previous wife and that he is trying to kill her as well. Quick, intriguing, and with an extremely interesting plot, âThe Grey Womanâ (1861) is a short story by Elizabeth Gaskell for anyone who enjoys a good gothic shudder. Incredibly progressive for its time, it is about the survival of the ill-treated woman who has decided that enough is enough.
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (1810-1865) was an English novelist, short story writer, and biographer, best known for her novels âNorth and Southâ and âWives and Daughtersâ as well as her biography of Charlotte BrontÃĢ. Gaskell was viewed as a minor author until the 1950s where it became evident that her depiction of industrial environments and social problems was brilliant and poignant.