The Classic of Victorian Erotica. In a work that ranks with My Secret Life and The Way of a Man with a Maid, Pauline is an acknowledged masterpiece of Victorian era erotic literature. The story of a comely young woman who receives training in singing as well as sexuality on her way to stardom as an internationally famed opera singer, Pauline frankly describes the experience of sexual initiation in the upper class of international society during the "Naughty Ninties." Written in the form of intimate letters shared with a female friend, Pauline unfolds a lifetime of sexual exploration and adventure.