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The early years and particular nature of John Cowper Powys's marriage to Margaret Lyon have long been mysteries. The same is true, despite passing references in his letters and diaries of his relationships with his brother-in-law, the architect Thomas Henry Lyon, and his old school friend, the renowned runner William Enderby Lutyens, poet and Anglo-Catholic priest. In this detailed and fascinating study, the writer draws on the disparate careers of all three men, as well as new sources, to weave together a composite picture of the influence of both the Lyons and Lutyens on Powys's life and of their fictional manifestations in his novels. The story of Powys's connection with the Lewes House brotherhood of Edward Perry Warren, wealthy Bostonian and collector of antiquities, is told for the first time, and her carefully considered speculation about the paternity of Powys's son is both original and intriguing. After studying at Oxford and working for John O'London's Weekly, Susan Rands married an Army officer, lived in 20 different houses in Malaya, Germany and the UK, and raised three children. Retired to Glastonbury, she has published several articles on both John Cowper Powys and local history, and has recently written a book on Susan O'Brien of Stinsford.
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