Roxana – Daniel Defoe (Limited Editions Club, 1976, illustrated by Bernd Kroeber)
This sumptuous LEC edition revives Defoe’s scandalous 1724 novel Roxana: The Fortunate Mistress, a proto-feminist tale of a woman who climbs society through seduction and wit—only to be undone by her past. German artist Bernd Kroeber (1938–2012) amplifies the story’s moral ambiguity with etchings that blend Rococo elegance and grotesque satire, mirroring Roxana’s glittering rise and grim reckoning.
For Collectors of Illustrated Classics:
- Moll Flanders (LEC, 1930) – Lynd Ward’s woodcuts – Defoe’s other anti-heroine, equally bold.
- Fanny Hill (LEC, 1966) – Édouard Chimot’s erotic engravings – Another “immoral” 18th-century heroine.
- The Life of Marianne – Marivaux (LEC, 1958) – French counterpart to Roxana’s scheming.
