Many of the characters introduced or mentioned in Appointment in Samarra (1934) appear in Ten North Frederick. The novel begins in 1945, just after Joe Chapin's death, but its action spans the decades since 1880, when Chapin's father first moves to the house in Gibbsville whose address is the title. Dr. English, his son Julian, Whit Hofman, and others are minor characters in the drama of the Chapin family, while Arthur McHenry, Joe's law partner, and Mike Slattery, the Gibbsville political leader, assume more central roles — the latter as a counterpoint to Chapin's impractical ambitions. The female characters in Ten North Frederick are particularly strong, not only in their complexity, but also in their ability to manipulate life to their own advantage. Chapin's mother, Charlotte, and his wife, Edith, nurture and direct his ambition so that they can benefit from its anticipated rewards.

Both are women for whom love means...