THE UNBECOMING of MARGARET WOLF by Isa Arsen - Spotlight


THE UNBECOMING of MARGARET WOLF (Putnam) is a sexy, atmospheric mid-century novel about two Shakespearean actors in an unusual marriage during one summer that will drive them closer than ever or rip them apart for good.

Up-and-coming stage actress Margaret Shoard has just taken a bow as Lady Macbeth, the role she has always believed was destined for her. At home, she plays wife to her best friend Wesley, even if she doesn’t hold his sole attention romantically. After a public breakdown threatens all she holds dear, Margaret’s doctor prescribes her uppers—just a little help to get through the days.

When Wesley is invited by eccentric director Vaughn Kline to join the cast for an inaugural Shakespeare performance in the New Mexico desert, Margaret decides to accompany him in the hopes that time away from the city will set her back to rights . . . but the world she finds in Vaughn’s company is filled with obsession and betrayal. Margaret and Wesley, embroiled in an affair with a man who may not be all he seems, must find a way forward together before their story becomes the real tragedy.


Isa Arsén is a certified bleeding heart based in South Texas, where she lives with her spouse and a comically small dog.

Her work has been featured in Stone of Madness Press, The McNeese Review, and several independent anthologies and audiovisual projects. Her novels include SHOOT THE MOON (Putnam, 2023), and THE UNBECOMING OF MARGARET WOLF (Putnam, 2025).

When not wrangling prose, Isa is a dialogue engineer & writer for interactive media.

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