Highlighting her multifaceted contributions, the book positions Jane Wilde as an important figure in literature and social thought. It explores her work as a poet, scholar, essayist, and translator, shedding light on her influence and significance in various literary and cultural contexts.
It is 1742 and the celebrated composer Georg Handel is in Dublin for the first performance of Messiah. Once the most successful composer of opera in London - feted by aristocracy and royalty alike - Handel is now penniless, recovering from illness, and out of favor, exiled to Dublin. With him and due to sing in his Messiah is the celebrated young actress, Susannah Cibber, the subject of scandal and public disgrace, on the run from an abusive husband. In this exciting historical novel, Walshe recounts Handel's time in Dublin, his sometimes shady role as emissary and spy for the Elector of Hanover (who in 1714 would become George I of Great Britain and Ireland) and his doomed first love affair. With energy and insight, this novel leads up to the first performance of the most celebrated work of sacred music, with failure and loss transformed in a moment by the genius of Handel's musical imagination.