Book dossier

The Gadfly

by Ethel Lilian Voynich

The Gadfly was published in 1897, and its original publishers feared a hostile public reaction to its theme of revolution. Instead, it quickly became a classic of socialism, one of the very first politically aware novels. A story of love and conspiracy, it was based in part on the early life of Sidney Rosenblum, better known as "Reilly Ace of Spies" -- Voynich's boyfriend at the time.