It contains an introduction which may suggest a romantic affair between the author and Hortense Mancini, niece of Cardinal Mazarin, one of the mistresses of Charles II and "adventuresses" of the 17th century.
After the count's wife dies, he sends his daughter to a nunnery run by her Reverend aunt, Lady Abbess, but with the provision that she will decide for herself whether she wants to become a nun when she turns thirteen.
Despite the success of her debut, aided by her genius, piety, and beauty, Isabella turns down the lavish lifestyle she could have as the wife of a wealthy man for the life of a nun.
She has a brother named Arnaldo Henault, who loves his sister dearly and comes to visit her almost every day at the nunnery gate.
They both secure pardons through the aid of Isabella's aunt, but they struggle on their own in the country, failing at farming and living in poverty.
As Villenoys returns to console his widow, he also seizes this as an opportunity to win the hand of Isabella, whom he still loves exceedingly.
She is executed, but before she dies she gives an empowered speech about the importance of keeping one's vows, thus conquering everyone's hearts with her beauty and wisdom to the very end.
French Gentleman: Fellow slave who escaped with Henault, who was able to connect the dots to the mysterious murder so that Isabella was able to be condemned to be beheaded.
Amatory fiction is mainly written by women and has a focus on sexual love and romance, as well as the story as a whole being a little more dramatic rather than realistic.
Common themes in amatory fiction include female-centered stories, gender inversion, and the use of masquerade or disguises.
Amatory fiction also explores issues of power, social convention, behavior reputation and gender identity.
Some critical reviewers such as Susan Goulding argue that Behn's use of nuns also serves as a gateway into the "history of feminist thought.
[2] Elizabeth Matthews calls Isabella 'a vulnerable body caught in the trap of her life', and suggests that Behn predominantly depicted her as an agonized victim who tries but fails to escape her dark fate.