In this spellbinding chronicle of evil, whatever charming little Rhoda Penmark wants, she ruthlessly goes after, no matter what—or who—stands in her way. Her mother, Christine, begins to see beyond Rhoda’s innocent smile and suspects that her daughter has a darker side, but keeps this knowledge to herself, with tragic results. 

Written in 1954 by William March, the book was nominated for the National Book Award for Fiction and was adapted into a long-running Broadway play by Maxwell Anderson, which opened that same year. It was made into an Academy Award-nominated film in 1956, though the ending was changed to comply with the Hollywood Production Code. Variously updated television movies followed in 1985 and a 2018 Lifetime movie with Rob Lowe .