Celebrated Irish dramatist and wit Oscar Wilde - best known for his poetry and his stage comedies - managed to complete only one novel during his career, The Picture of Dorian Gray, a brilliant and (at the time) scandalous narrative, in which Wilde explores the life of a young man who sells his soul in order to live the profligate life of an avowed hedonist. Through a bit of supernatural magic, Dorian is given a portrait of himself that reflects his sinful and destructive ways while Dorian himself remains as alluring and attractive as the day the painting was created. As Dorian's soul rots, the figure in the painting does as well, but his face appears pure and untouched, no matter how far down into darkness Dorian manages to sink. As his sins mount from casual cruelty to cold-blooded murder, Dorian's double life becomes impossible to sustain, leading to a shocking and horrifying conclusion.
