“This work is equal to any of the productions of Thackeray or Dickens, so promptly
republished and so extensively patronized in this country. A bold assertion—but it will
be verified by the thousands who will assuredly peruse the book. Without being sectional,
personal, or partizan—without pandering to public prejudices, or aiming to achieve a parasitical
popularity—the author has wisely relied upon his own powers and his own merits
for success. From the first chapter to the last, the story is intensely interesting. The plot
is deeply conceived and skilfully unfolded. The characters—including churchmen, politicians,
bankers, lawyers, physicians, publishers, critics, authors and lovers—are strikingly
developed; and there is not a line in the book that the most pious mother would hesitate
to read to her daughter. Every page furnishes evidence of profound thought and patient
elaboration. The events occur in natural progression, and the attention of the reader is
arrested by an irresistible fascination.”