Vernon Lee

The Profile

Vernon Lee is the pen name of Violet Paget (1856–1935), an English writer known for supernatural fiction, short stories, and essays on aesthetics; she lived for many years in Italy, notably Florence.

Pen name of Violet Paget; born 1856, died 1935; long resident in Florence, Italy; best known for supernatural fiction and writings on aesthetics.

A single enthusiastic review praises Vernon Lee's "Amour Dure": a fin-de-siècle fantastic tale set in Urbania, Italy, about a protagonist enchanted by a painting and driven toward obsession and madness. The reviewer highlights the story's blend of historical detail and invention and its circular motif of love, life, and death.