One of MacDonald's lengthy and powerful, but not widely studied, novels, Mary Marston is the only book in the MacDonald corpus with a woman featured in the title role. As one of MacDonald’s many strong and memorable leading ladies, Mary exemplifies a life of dedication to Christ, self-sacrifice, and obedience to parents. We encounter here a touching portrayal of that earthly relationship so dear to MacDonald's heart, because it so embodied man’s relationship with God—the relationship between fathers and their sons and daughters. Of the diverse range of characters found within the pages of this novel, Michael Phillips writes, “Taken together, their individual lives make fascinating reading. They are so diverse, sometimes so petty and foolish, their intertwining relationships so humorous at times…we observe human growth at work…always progressing in one direction or the other—sometimes straight, sometimes crooked. It is a diverse character mix in many shades of gray…containing diverse character flaws without easy resolutions. I find it one of the most real array of characters in the MacDonald corpus.”

In George MacDonald’s most well-known novel, published in 1868, the quest of young Robert Falconer for his father becomes a parallel quest to break free from the oppressive Calvinist theology of his grandmother. As he struggles to come to terms with the strict orthodoxy prevalent in Scotland for two centuries, the doctrine of hell looms as the great stumbling block in Robert’s mind. His lifelong search reveals to Robert the groundbreaking truth that hell is remedial not punitive, designed to produce ultimate repentance not everlasting punishment. This highly autobiographical work offers a rare glimpse into MacDonald's own youthful quandaries, and a window into the development of his faith, which would turn generations toward the Fatherhood of a loving God. After the book’s publication, as a result of the bold themes running through the narrative, MacDonald came to be considered a “universalist” and “heretic” in some circles—grievous mischaracterizations that persist to this day. This new edition by MacDonald biographer Michael Phillips streamlines the occasionally ponderous Victorian narrative style, and updates the thick Doric brogue into readable English.

In 1879 George MacDonald said that no biography should be written of a man still living. He wrote: "I trust the outer life of one who has written a good many volumes tending to reveal most that is worth knowing of his inner life, will be forgotten in this world, after he has left it…I do not like or approve…of publicizing live people. If anything is left after a hundred years, accompanied by a desire to know, then is soon enough." This major new work by Michael Phillips thus qualifies as the first biography of MacDonald written, according to that criteria, more than a hundred years after his death. It is the longest biography written about the Scotsman, focusing on the development and progressive publication of his written works, explaining how the events of his life contributed to the evolution of that legacy. Novelist, editor, and publisher of numerous volumes by and about his mentor, Michael Phillips is recognized as a man with keen insight into George MacDonald’s heart and message. As a best-selling novelist in his own right, he is doubly qualified to reveal the deeper themes of MacDonald’s writing life. He brings his wisdom to bear on the individual volumes of The Cullen Collection of the Fiction of George MacDonald, pointing out each book’s essential themes, and offering insights into how each title in MacDonald’s fictional corpus can most perceptively be read. This latest of Phillips’ many contributions to MacDonald scholarship, what he calls a "bibliographic biography," will surely take its place among the significant illuminations of MacDonald’s life and work for many years to come.