Denise Robins
Encyclopedia
Denise Robins, née Denise Naomi Klein (b. 1 February 1897 in London, England – d. 1 May 1985 in England) was a prolific British romantic novelist
and the first President of the Romantic Novelists' Association
(1960–1966). She wrote under her first married name and under the pen-names: Denise Chesterton, Hervey Hamilton, Francesca Wright, Ashley French, Harriet Gray and Julia Kane, producing short stories
, plays
, and about 170 Gothic romance novels. Her books sold over one hundred million copies. In 1965, Robins published her autobiography, Stranger Than Fiction. In October 2011 the first dozen of her novels were released in e-book format.
, who was a professor of music and journalist. Of Russian
ancestry, he had been born in Norwich
in 1856. Her mother Kathleen Clarice had been born in Melbourne, Australia, on 11 March 1872 and was the daughter of George Cornwell
and his wife Jemima Ridpath, married in 1850. George Cornwell
was a railway guard who became a successful gold prospector
in Australia, operating several mines, and a notable building contractor. His eldest daughter, Alice Cornwell, born 1852, was spectacularly rich by the 1890s, returning to England and buying the Sunday Times newspaper.
Her parents had married in 1890. He had a daughter Sibyl Klein, from a previous marriage, and they had two sons: Adrian Bernard Klein (1892–1969) and Daryl Klein (1894), before the birth of Denise Naomi Klein (1897–1985). The childhood of Denise, Adrian and Daryl Klein was far from settled. Kathleen Klein began an affair with a Worcestershire Regiment
officer called Herbert Berkeley Dealtry, who was much younger than her husband and herself, and when Hermann Klein became aware of it he filed a petition for divorce, which was granted in December 1901. Kathleen then married Dealtry.
In 1905, the Dealtrys had some serious troubles in connection with the promotion of dog shows, which they had been drawn into by Kathleen's sister Alice Stennard Robinson, a leading member of the Ladies' Kennel Association (founded 1904) and the National Cat Club. Somehow, the money from the first dog show went missing, and the Dealtrys held a second show to pay the prize money owed on the first. After the second show, prize winners sued Dealtry, which led to his being declared bankrupt. The family then lived in America for a few years but, by 1908, Kathleen (or 'Kit') Dealtry was back in London, writing Christian novels. In 1918 she married for a third time and wrote at least three books as Mrs Sydney Groom.
Her eldest brother Adrian Bernard Klein also became a writer, he was an artist and wrote books on photography and cinematography
. After serving as an officer in the British Army
, he became a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society
and changed his name to Adrian Cornwell-Clyne.
Denise Naomi Klein married firstly Arthur Robins in 1918, a corn broker on the Baltic Exchange
, they had three daughters, Eve Louise, Patricia Robins
(aka Claire Lorrimer) who became another best-selling author, and Anne Eleanor. On 1938, the marriage ended in divorce, after Robins met O'Neill Pearson in Egypt, they married in 1939. However, like Agatha Christie
, Robins continued to publish most of her books under her first married name.
, then became a freelance writer. She began to follow in her mother's footsteps when her first novel was published in 1924. Her serial What is Love? ran in The Star
from December 1925 to February 1926. Her first play, Heatwave, written in collaboration with Roland Pertwee
, was produced at the St James's Theatre
, London, in 1929. As a writer of fiction, Denise Klein wrote under a variety of pen-names, including Denise Chesterton, Francesca Wright, Ashley French, Harriet Gray, Hervey Hamilton and Julia Kane. After marrying Arthur Robins, many of her books were written under her married name.
Robins had been writing fiction and getting it published for ten years when in 1927 she met Charles Boon, of Mills & Boon
, and she entered her first contract with his firm the same year. Under the terms of this, she was to be paid an advance of thirty pounds
for three novels, plus ten per cent terms. Her next contract, for a further six books, delivered an advance
of twenty-five pounds for each book, while her third contract, for four more books, paid one hundred pounds for each, plus terms of twelve and a half per cent.
The colourful dust wrappers of Mills & Boon's books were becoming one of their biggest selling points. As an example, the cover of Robins's Women Who Seek (1928) showed a glamorous flapper checking her make-up.
Robins became not only Mills & Boon's most prolific writer, but also their best paid. A contract she signed in 1932 paid her £2,400 for eight books, which were those from Shatter the Sky (July 1933) to How Great the Price (June 1935). This was, however, her last work for the firm, as she was then 'poached' by a new publisher, Nicholson & Watson. Of this development, Arthur Boon wrote:
Robins gave her version of events in her autobiography:
The first book Robins wrote for Nicholson was Life and Love (1935), which was launched with a huge publicity campaign. Robins's first photo opportunity was a visit to Liverpool
to open a new lending library, and the slogan 'Robins for Romance' was posted on London buses.
Joseph McAleer has described Robins as "the recognised mistress of the punishing kiss device.
During her long career as a writer, from about 1917 until her death in 1985, Robins certainly wrote more than one hundred and sixty books. She was dubbed by the Daily Graphic
"the queen of romantic fiction".
She was elected as President of the Romantic Novelists' Association
in 1961.
In 1965, Robins published her autobiography, Stranger Than Fiction, summarised thus: "Apart from writing nearly two hundred novels that have brought her millions of fans throughout the world, Denise Robins led a remarkable life. Her unhappy childhood did not sour her belief in love. Here is her own story."
At the time of her death in 1985, Robins's books had been translated into fifteen languages and had sold more than one hundred million copies. In 1984, they were borrowed more than one and a half million times from British libraries. Among her best-selling works were House of the Seventh Cross, Khamsin and Dark Corridor.
Romance novel
The romance novel is a literary genre developed in Western culture, mainly in English-speaking countries. Novels in this genre place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Through the late...
and the first President of the Romantic Novelists' Association
Romantic Novelists' Association
The Romantic Novelists' Association is a writers' association in the UK. Founded in 1960, mainly through the efforts of Denise Robins , Barbara Cartland , Vivian Stuart , and other authors like Elizabeth Goudge, Netta Muskett, Catherine Cookson, Rosamunde Pilcher and Lucilla Andrews.The RNA runs...
(1960–1966). She wrote under her first married name and under the pen-names: Denise Chesterton, Hervey Hamilton, Francesca Wright, Ashley French, Harriet Gray and Julia Kane, producing short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
, plays
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, and about 170 Gothic romance novels. Her books sold over one hundred million copies. In 1965, Robins published her autobiography, Stranger Than Fiction. In October 2011 the first dozen of her novels were released in e-book format.
Personal life
Born Denise Naomi Klein on 1 February 1897 in London, England, was the daughter of Kathleen Clarice Louise Cornwell, who was also a prolific author who wrote under several names, and of her first husband, Herman KleinHerman Klein
Herman Klein was an English music critic, author and teacher of singing. Klein's famous brothers included Charles and Manuel Klein...
, who was a professor of music and journalist. Of Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
ancestry, he had been born in Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
in 1856. Her mother Kathleen Clarice had been born in Melbourne, Australia, on 11 March 1872 and was the daughter of George Cornwell
George Cornwell
George Cornwell was a railway engineer and building contractor working in Melbourne, Victoria in the second half of the nineteenth century. Among his prominent works, were the Hawthorn Railway Bridge built in 1861, with a span of about , being one of the last major items of permanent way to be...
and his wife Jemima Ridpath, married in 1850. George Cornwell
George Cornwell
George Cornwell was a railway engineer and building contractor working in Melbourne, Victoria in the second half of the nineteenth century. Among his prominent works, were the Hawthorn Railway Bridge built in 1861, with a span of about , being one of the last major items of permanent way to be...
was a railway guard who became a successful gold prospector
Gold prospecting
Gold prospecting is the act of searching for new gold deposits. Methods used vary with the type of deposit sought and the resources of the prospector...
in Australia, operating several mines, and a notable building contractor. His eldest daughter, Alice Cornwell, born 1852, was spectacularly rich by the 1890s, returning to England and buying the Sunday Times newspaper.
Her parents had married in 1890. He had a daughter Sibyl Klein, from a previous marriage, and they had two sons: Adrian Bernard Klein (1892–1969) and Daryl Klein (1894), before the birth of Denise Naomi Klein (1897–1985). The childhood of Denise, Adrian and Daryl Klein was far from settled. Kathleen Klein began an affair with a Worcestershire Regiment
Worcestershire Regiment
The Worcestershire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army, formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 29th Regiment of Foot and the 36th Regiment of Foot....
officer called Herbert Berkeley Dealtry, who was much younger than her husband and herself, and when Hermann Klein became aware of it he filed a petition for divorce, which was granted in December 1901. Kathleen then married Dealtry.
In 1905, the Dealtrys had some serious troubles in connection with the promotion of dog shows, which they had been drawn into by Kathleen's sister Alice Stennard Robinson, a leading member of the Ladies' Kennel Association (founded 1904) and the National Cat Club. Somehow, the money from the first dog show went missing, and the Dealtrys held a second show to pay the prize money owed on the first. After the second show, prize winners sued Dealtry, which led to his being declared bankrupt. The family then lived in America for a few years but, by 1908, Kathleen (or 'Kit') Dealtry was back in London, writing Christian novels. In 1918 she married for a third time and wrote at least three books as Mrs Sydney Groom.
Her eldest brother Adrian Bernard Klein also became a writer, he was an artist and wrote books on photography and cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
. After serving as an officer in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, he became a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society
Royal Photographic Society
The Royal Photographic Society is the world's oldest national photographic society. It was founded in London, United Kingdom in 1853 as The Photographic Society of London with the objective of promoting the Art and Science of Photography...
and changed his name to Adrian Cornwell-Clyne.
Denise Naomi Klein married firstly Arthur Robins in 1918, a corn broker on the Baltic Exchange
Baltic Exchange
The Baltic Exchange is the world's only independent source of maritime market information for the trading and settlement of physical and derivative contracts...
, they had three daughters, Eve Louise, Patricia Robins
Patricia Robins
Patricia Robins is a British romance novelist, also known as Claire Lorrimer.Robins comes from an artistic family. Her maternal grandfather was Herman Klein, a musician and her maternal grandmother was the writer Kathleen Clarice Groom...
(aka Claire Lorrimer) who became another best-selling author, and Anne Eleanor. On 1938, the marriage ended in divorce, after Robins met O'Neill Pearson in Egypt, they married in 1939. However, like Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
, Robins continued to publish most of her books under her first married name.
Writing career
When she left school, Denise Klein went to work as a journalist for the D. C. Thomson PressD. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, is a publishing company based in Dundee, Scotland, best known for producing The Dundee Courier, The Evening Telegraph, The Sunday Post, Oor Wullie, The Broons, The Beano, The Dandy and Commando comics...
, then became a freelance writer. She began to follow in her mother's footsteps when her first novel was published in 1924. Her serial What is Love? ran in The Star
The Star (London)
The Star was a London evening newspaper founded in 1788.The first edition was printed on 3 May 1788 under the editorship of Peter Stuart. Founding sponsors of the new paper included publisher John Murray and William Lane of the Minerva Press...
from December 1925 to February 1926. Her first play, Heatwave, written in collaboration with Roland Pertwee
Roland Pertwee
Roland Pertwee was an English playwright, film and television screenwriter, director and actor. He was the father of both Doctor Who star Jon Pertwee and fellow playwright and screenwriter Michael Pertwee...
, was produced at the St James's Theatre
St James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was a 1,200-seat theatre located in King Street, at Duke Street, St James's, London. The elaborate theatre was designed with a neo-classical exterior and a Louis XIV style interior by Samuel Beazley and built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell for the tenor and theatre...
, London, in 1929. As a writer of fiction, Denise Klein wrote under a variety of pen-names, including Denise Chesterton, Francesca Wright, Ashley French, Harriet Gray, Hervey Hamilton and Julia Kane. After marrying Arthur Robins, many of her books were written under her married name.
Robins had been writing fiction and getting it published for ten years when in 1927 she met Charles Boon, of Mills & Boon
Mills & Boon
Mills & Boon is a British publisher of romance novels. It was founded in 1908, and was independent until its purchase in 1971 by Harlequin Enterprises with whom the company had had a long informal partnership...
, and she entered her first contract with his firm the same year. Under the terms of this, she was to be paid an advance of thirty pounds
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
for three novels, plus ten per cent terms. Her next contract, for a further six books, delivered an advance
Advance against royalties
In the field of intellectual property licensing, an advance against royalties is a payment made by the licensee to the licensor at the start of the period of licensing which is to be offset against future royalty payments.For example, a book's author may sell a license to a publisher in return for...
of twenty-five pounds for each book, while her third contract, for four more books, paid one hundred pounds for each, plus terms of twelve and a half per cent.
The colourful dust wrappers of Mills & Boon's books were becoming one of their biggest selling points. As an example, the cover of Robins's Women Who Seek (1928) showed a glamorous flapper checking her make-up.
Robins became not only Mills & Boon's most prolific writer, but also their best paid. A contract she signed in 1932 paid her £2,400 for eight books, which were those from Shatter the Sky (July 1933) to How Great the Price (June 1935). This was, however, her last work for the firm, as she was then 'poached' by a new publisher, Nicholson & Watson. Of this development, Arthur Boon wrote:
Robins gave her version of events in her autobiography:
The first book Robins wrote for Nicholson was Life and Love (1935), which was launched with a huge publicity campaign. Robins's first photo opportunity was a visit to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
to open a new lending library, and the slogan 'Robins for Romance' was posted on London buses.
Joseph McAleer has described Robins as "the recognised mistress of the punishing kiss device.
During her long career as a writer, from about 1917 until her death in 1985, Robins certainly wrote more than one hundred and sixty books. She was dubbed by the Daily Graphic
Daily Graphic
The Daily Graphic: An Illustrated Evening Newspaper was the first American newspaper with daily illustrations. It was founded in New York in 1873 by a firm of Canadian engravers and began publication in March of that year...
"the queen of romantic fiction".
She was elected as President of the Romantic Novelists' Association
Romantic Novelists' Association
The Romantic Novelists' Association is a writers' association in the UK. Founded in 1960, mainly through the efforts of Denise Robins , Barbara Cartland , Vivian Stuart , and other authors like Elizabeth Goudge, Netta Muskett, Catherine Cookson, Rosamunde Pilcher and Lucilla Andrews.The RNA runs...
in 1961.
In 1965, Robins published her autobiography, Stranger Than Fiction, summarised thus: "Apart from writing nearly two hundred novels that have brought her millions of fans throughout the world, Denise Robins led a remarkable life. Her unhappy childhood did not sour her belief in love. Here is her own story."
At the time of her death in 1985, Robins's books had been translated into fifteen languages and had sold more than one hundred million copies. In 1984, they were borrowed more than one and a half million times from British libraries. Among her best-selling works were House of the Seventh Cross, Khamsin and Dark Corridor.
Novels
- Love's Broken Idol (1918)
- Christmas Roses (1942)
- What Wendy Did (1942)
- When Love Called (1942)
- Queen of the Roses (1943)
Novels
- The Marriage Bond (1924)
- Sealed Lips (1924)
- The Inevitable End (1927)
- Jonquil (1927)
- The Triumph of the Rat (1927) aka Gilded Cage
- Desire is Blind (1928)
- The Passionate Flame (1928)
- White Jade (1928)
- Women Who Seek (1928)
- The Dark Death (1929)
- The Enduring Flame (1929)
- Heavy Clay (1929) aka Heart of Paris
- Love Was a Jest (1929)
- And All Because (1930)
- Heat Wave (1930)
- Swing of Youth (1930)
- Crowns, Pounds, and Guineas (1931)
- Fever of Love (1931)
- Lovers of Janine (1931)
- Second Best (1931)
- Blaze of Love (1932)
- The Boundary Line (1932)
- The Secret Hour (1932)
- The Wild Bird (1932)
- Gay Defeat (1933)
- Men Are Only Human (1933)
- Shatter the Sky (1933)
- Strange Rapture (1933)
- Brief Ecstasy (1934)
- Never Give All (1934)
- Slave-Woman (1934)
- Sweet Love (1934)
- All This for Love (1935)
- Climb to the Stars (1935)
- How Great the Price (1935)
- Life and Love (1935)
- Murder in Mayfair (1935)
- Love Game (1936)
- Those Who Love (1936)
- Were I Thy Bride (1936)
- Kiss of Youth (1937)
- Set Me Free (1937)
- The Tiger in Men (1937)
- Since We Love (1938)
- Restless Heart (1938)
- You Have Chosen (1938)
- Dear Loyalty (1939)
- Gypsy Lover (1939)
- I, Too, Have Loved (1939)
- Island of Flowers (1940)
- Little We Know (1940)
- Sweet Sorrow (1940)
- To Love is to Live (1940)
- If This Be Destiny (1941)
- Set the Stars Alight (1941)
- Winged Love (1941)
- This One Night (1942)
- War Marriage (1942) aka Let Me Love
- The Changing Years (1943)
- Daughter Knows Best (1943)
- Dust of Dreams (1943)
- Escape to Love (1943)
- This Spring of Love (1943)
- War changes Everything (1943)
- Give Me Back My Heart (1944)
- Never Look Back (1944)
- How to Forget (1944)
- Desert Rapture (1945)
- Love so Young (1945)
- All for You (1946)
- Separation (1946)
- The Story of Veronica (1946)
- Forgive Me, My Love (1947)
- More Than Love (1947)
- Could I Forget (1948)
- The Feast is Finished (1948)
- Greater Than All (1948)
- Khamsin (1948)
- Love Me No More! (1948)
- To Love Again (1949)
- The Uncertain Heart (1949)
- Love Hath an Island (1950) aka The Cyprus Love Affair
- The Madness of Love (1950)
- Infatuation (1951)
- Second Marriage (1951)
- Something to Love (1951)
- Only My Dreams (1951)
- The Other Love (1952)
- Strange Meeting (1952)
- First Long Kiss (1953)
- My True Love (1953)
- The Long Shadow (1954)
- The Unshaken Loyalty (1954)
- Venetian Rhapsody (1954)
- Bitter-Sweet (1955)
- All That Matters (1956)
- Enchanted Island (1956)
- Loving and Giving (1956)
- Light the Candles (1957)
- The Noble One (1957)
- The Seagull's Cry (1957)
- Chateau of Flowers (1958)
- Untrodden Snow (1958)
- Do Not Go, My Love (1959)
- We Two Together (1959)
- Arrow in the Heart (1960)
- The Unlit Fire (1960)
- I Should Have Known (1961)
- A Promise is for Ever (1961)
- Put Back the Clock (1962)
- Mad is the Heart (1963)
- Nightingale's Song (1963)
- Reputation (1963)
- Meet Me in Monte Carlo (1964)
- Moment of Love (1964)
- Once is Enough (1965)
- The Strong Heart (1965)
- The Crash (1966)
- Lightning Strikes Twice (1966)
- Love is Enough (1966)
- O Love! O Fire! (1966)
- Forbidden (1967)
- House of the Seventh Cross (1967)
- Wait for Tomorrow (1967)
- House by the Watch Tower (1968)
- Laurence, My Love (1968)
- The Price of Folly (1968)
- Two Loves (1968)
- When a Woman Loves (1968)
- Love and Desire and Hate (1969)
- A Love Like Ours (1969)
- Sweet Cassandra (1970)
- Other Side of Love (1973)
- Twice Have I Loved (1973)
- The Snow Must Return (1972)
- Australian Opal Safari (1974)
- The Dark Corridor (1974)
- Betrayal (1976)
- Come Back, Yesterday (1976)
- It Wasn't Love (1976)
- Family Holiday (1978)
- Heatwave (1978)
- To Love Again (1980)
- Love's Triumph (1983)
- Princess Passes (1983)
- For the Sake of Love (1985)
- Life's a Game (1985)
- Masquerade of Love (1985)
- The Enchantress (1987)
- The Woman's Side of It (1988)
- Illusion of Love (2000)
Omnibus
- Love Poems, and others (1930)
- One Night in Ceylon, and others (1931)
- Love, Volume I (1980)
- Love, Volume II: To Love is to Live / You Have Chosen / The Changing Years (1980)
- Love, Volume III: Lightning Strikes Twice / Forbidden / A Love Like Ours (1980)
- Love, Volume IV : Loving and Giving / The Noble One / Brief Ecstasy (1980)
- Love, Volume V: The Cyprus Love Affair / The Wild Bird / Shatter the Sky / The Unlit Fire (1980)
- Love, Volume VI: The Other Side of Love / Climb to the Stairs / Sweet Cassandra (1980)
- Love, Volume VII (1980)
- Love, Volume VIII: Those Who Love / Arrow in the Heart (1980)
- Love, Volume IX (1980)
- Love, Volume X: Strange Rapture / A Promise is for Ever (1980)
- Love, Volume XI (1981)
- Love, Volume XII (1981)
- Love, Volume XIII (1981)
- Love, Volume XIV (1981)
- Love, Volume XV (1981)
- Love, Volume XVI (1981)
Collections
- Heat Wave... (1930) (with Roland PertweeRoland PertweeRoland Pertwee was an English playwright, film and television screenwriter, director and actor. He was the father of both Doctor Who star Jon Pertwee and fellow playwright and screenwriter Michael Pertwee...
) - Tree Fairies... (1945) (with Franke Rogers)
- Light the Candles... (1957) (with Michael PertweeMichael PertweeMichael Pertwee was a British playwright and screenwriter. Among his credits were episodes of The Saint, Danger Man, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, B-And-B, Ladies Who Do, and many other films and TV series....
) - Woman's Weekly Fiction Series: Volume 4, Number 7 (1977) (with Rachel Murray)
- Woman's Weekly Fiction Series: Volume 5, Number 2 (1978) (with Rachel Murray)
- Woman's Weekly Fiction Series: Volume 7, Number 12 (1980) (with Joanna Logan)
- Woman's Weekly Fiction Series: Volume 7, Number 13 (1980) (with Pat Lacey)
- Woman's Weekly Fiction Series: Volume 7, Number 21 (1980) (with Joanna Logan)
- Woman's Weekly Images of Love: Volume 10, Number 20 (1983) (with Briony Tedgle)
- Woman's Weekly Images of Love: Volume 5, Number 6 (1988) (with Rachel Murray)
Novels
- The Loves of Lucrezia (1953) aka Lucrezia (reedited as Denise Robins)
- She Devil (1970) Jezebel (reedited as Denise Robins)
Novels
- Gold for the Gay Masters (1954) aka Fauna (reedited as Denise Robins)
- Bride of Doom (1956)
- Bride of Violence (1957)
- The Flame and the Frost (1957)
- Dance in the Dust (1959)
- My Lady Destiny (1961)