In this grand retelling of A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens' most infamous female steps into the spotlight. For centuries Madame Defarge has been read as a villainous creature waiting for her opportunity to exact revenge on an aristocratic family, regardless of which good people may become collateral. Wendy Kesselman has dared to ask: Who really is Therese Defarge, the woman whose fury catalyzed the best of times--and the worst of times?