Small image of a man handing a book to a women across a counter.

At the Circulating Library

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

Author: Margaret Agnes Paul

Author: Margaret Agnes Paul (1829–1905)

Alternate Name(s): Colvile (maiden name)

Biography: Margaret Agnes Paul was born in 1829, the daughter of Andrew Wedderburn (later Colvile) and Hon. Louisa Mary Eden (herself the daughter of William, 1st Lord Auckland). Her brother was Sir James W. Colvile (1810–1880). In 1856, she married author Charles Kegan Paul (1828–1902), then a chaplain at Eton and later a vicar in Dorsetshire. The couple had five children. She began writing novels the year of her marriage beginning with Dorothy (1856) and DeCressy (1856). Paul wrote twelve novels in all, all published anonymously, all conventional romances. Meantime, her husband wrote religious books and became a reader for publisher Henry S. King. In 1874 Kegan Paul resigned his living and the family moved to London. Eventually Kegan Paul bought King's publishing company and renamed it after himself. Kegan Paul died in 1902 and Margaret died in 1905.

References: DNB (Sir James W. Colvile, Charles Kegan Paul); Leslie Howsam, Kegan Paul, A Victorian Imprint (University of Toronto Press, 1898)

Fiction Titles:

  1. Dorothy: A Tale.  1 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1856.
  2. DeCressy: A Tale.  1 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1856.
  3. Still Waters.  2 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1857.
  4. Maiden Sisters: A Tale.  1 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1858.
  5. Uncle Ralph: A Tale.  1 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1858.
  6. Martha Brown, the Heiress.  1 vol.  London: John W. Parker, 1861.
  7. Three Weddings.  1 vol.  London: Longman, 1870.
  8. Thomasina: A Biography.  2 vol.  London: Henry S. King, 1872.
  9. Vanessa.  2 vol.  London: Henry S. King, 1875.
  10. Gentle and Simple.  2 vol.  London: Kegan Paul, 1878.
  11. Kintail Place: A Tale of Revolution.  1 vol.  London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1886.