Freud's Mistress (Mack, Kaufman)

Book Reviews
A portrait of forbidden desire based on historical speculations, Mack and Kaufman’s thoroughly researched novel explores the difficult moral questions that can arise from adultery.... Minna grapples with the “burden of betrayal” and Sigmund’s cunning rationalizations while trying to answer this novel’s cliched but nonetheless thought-provoking central question: how far are you willing to go to be happy?
Publishers Weekly


Too outspoken to succeed as a lady's companion or to settle for a marriage of convenience, Minna Bernays seeks a temporary solution to her financial difficulties by moving in with her sister Martha [Freud]'s family.... Freud's intellect and charm shine through his self-centeredness. Rumors about Freud and his sister-in-law, who in real life lived with the family for more than 40 years, abound. This novel, inspired by historical events, places the possible affair between Freud and Minna firmly in the intellectual and social milieu of fin de siecle Vienna. —Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State Univ. Lib., Mankato
Library Journal


A fictionalized account of Sigmund Freud's romantic involvement with his sister-in-law...based loosely on unsubstantiated conjecture that Sigmund Freud and his wife's sister, Minna Bernays, had a love affair while living under the same roof.... Does Martha know or care that her husband's engaged in intimate acts with her own sister? Neither spouse appears overly concerned about the activities of the other....but Minna's racked with guilt.... Freud's theories about human sexuality and behavior may be considered pretty wild, but his own sex life comes across as dull.
Kirkus Reviews