"Oliver Wendell Holmes spins a story of mystery and intrigue regarding a young woman from New England."@en
"Sparkling with wit and humor, The Guardian Angel first serialized in The Atlantic Monthly paints a charming portrait of society in a New England country town in the mid-nineteenth century. Homes' inspiration came from his belief that man was a product solely of his heredity and environment."
"Tells of the escape of a young girl from the New England household of her tight-lipped Aunt Silence and from a ménage further aggravated by the unwelcome attentions of the local Calvinist minister. It tells of her attempt at suicide by drowning and of her rescue from the river. It describes her convalescence under the affectionate care of a doctor and his friends and concludes with her emotional and physical fulfillment in marriage and a new life. It hints all along at a shadowy "power"--Myrtle's "guardian angel" -- who walks beside her, pointing the way or speaks from the depths within her."@en