Kathleen Clarice Groom (née Cornwell; 11 March 1872 – 29 April 1954) was a British writer of short-stories and novels from 1907 to 1952, she signed under different pen names: Clarice Klein, Kit Dealtry, C. Groom, Mrs. Sydney Groom, and K. C. Groom (playing with her different names and surnames). She started a dynasty of popular writers; her eldest son Adrian Bernard Klein, changed his name to

Adrian Cornwell-Clyne Adrian is a form of the Latin given name Adrianus or Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria from the Venetic and Illyrian word ''adur'', meaning "sea" or "water". The Adria was until the 8th century BC the main ...

, and became an artist, who wrote books on photography and cinematography, her daughter Denise Naomi Klein also followed in her footsteps and became the popular romance writer

Denise Robins Denise Robins (née Denise Naomi Klein; 1 February 1897 – 1 May 1985) was a prolific English people, English Romance novel, romantic novelist and the first President of the Romantic Novelists' Association (1960–1966). She wrote under her fi ...

, who was the first president of the

Romantic Novelists' Association The Romantic Novelists' Association (RNA) is the professional body representing authors of romantic fiction in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1960 by Denise Robins (first president), Barbara Cartland (first vice-president), Vivian Stua ...

(1960–1966), and her granddaughter

Patricia Robins Patricia Robins (1 February 1921 – 4 December 2016) was a British writer of short stories and over 80 novels mainly romance novel, romances from 1934 to 2016, she also signed under the pseudonym Claire Lorrimer, she had sold more than ten mil ...

(aka Claire Lorrimer), who is Denise Robins' daughter, is also a popular romance writer.

Biography

Personal life

Groom was born Kathleen Clarice Louise Cornwell on 11 March 1872 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Australia, the daughter of Jemima Ridpath, and her husband George Cornwell, married in 1850.Marriage cert GRO Sep 1850 W. Ham 12/415. On 19 February 1890, at 17, Kathleen Clarice became the second wife of

Herman Klein Herman Klein (born Hermann Klein; 23 July 1856 – 10 March 1934) was an English music critic, author and teacher of singing. Klein's famous brothers included Charles Klein, Charles and Manuel Klein. His second wife was the writer Kathleen Cla ...

(1856–1934), an English musical author, teacher and critic, who was 16 years older than she was. He had a daughter

Sibyl Klein The sibyls were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he described local traditions in his ...

, from a previous marriage, and they had two sons: Adrian Bernard Klein (1892–1969) and Daryl Klein (1894) and a daughter Denise Naomi Klein (1897–1985).Kathleen Clarice Cornwell... Klein... Dealtry... Groom
online at bearalley.blogspot.com (accessed 4 April 2008) During her marriage with Klein, she began an affair with a young man, Herbert Arthur Berkeley Dealtry (1878–1915), who was a

Worcestershire Regiment The Worcestershire Regiment was a line infantry regiment in the British Army, formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot and the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot. The regiment ...

officer. When Herman Klein became aware of it he filed a petition for divorce, which was granted in December 1901. After the divorce Kathleen Clarice married with Dealtry in 1902. The marriage was going through financial difficulties and Dealtry had to declare bankruptcy in 1905, and they left for America with her daughter, Denise Naomi. Some years later, Kathleen Clarice returned to London, and in 1918, she married for a third time with Sydney H. Groom, while her daughter Denise married for the first time and also started to write. Kathleen Clarise started a saga of popular writers; her eldest son Adrian Bernard Klein, changed her name to

, and became an artist, who wrote books on photography and cinematography, her daughter Denise Naomi Klein also followed in her footsteps and became the popular romance writer

, who was the first president of the

(1960–1966), and her granddaughter

(aka Claire Lorrimer), who is Denise Robin's daughter, is also a popular romance writer. Kathleen Clarise died in the

Hove Hove ( ) is a seaside resort in East Sussex, England. Alongside Brighton, it is one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove. Originally a fishing village surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th century in respon ...

area,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

on 29 April 1954,
New General Catalog of Old Books and Authors aged 82.

Writing career

Kathleen Clarise started writing very young short stories; later wrote several serial thrillers for a Scottish newspaper.
Crime Fiction IV She wrote several short stories in Magazines and novels under different pseudonyms (playing with her different names and surnames). She is known as a prolific writer and screenwriter, but it is difficult to know how many pennames she used and how many books she wrote. She wrote as Kit Dealtry (her second married name) at least four short stories by the ''

All-Story Magazine ''The All-Story Magazine'' was a pulp magazine founded in 1905 and published by Frank Munsey. The editor was Robert H. Davis; Thomas Newell Metcalf also worked as a managing editor for the magazine. It was published monthly until March 1914, ...

'' (1907–1908) and two novels (1908–1909). As C. Groom (her third married name), she wrote at least two novels (1918–1919). She signed at least four novels as Mrs. Sydney Groom (1920–1924). And some of her latest tree novels were signed as K. C. Groom (1947–1952).

Bibliography

As Clarice Klein

Short story collection

*''The Paving of Hell'' (Perth, Scotland: Cowan & Co., 1895) and (London: Dean & Co., 1895)''Academy'' (London, England : 1869),, vol. 48, issue 1212, 13 July 1895, p. 29; ''Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser'' (Manchester, England), 1 May 1895, Issue 12004, p.2

As Kit Dealtry

Short stories in magazines

*"The Voice in the Dark" in ''The All-Story Magazine'' (1907/May) *"The Cipher Skull" in ''The All-Story Magazine'' (1907/Aug) *"Shadowed" in ''The All-Story Magazine'' (1908/Feb) *"Pearls and Perfidy" in ''The All-Story Magazine'' (1908/Dec)

Novels

*''Under the Mistletoe Bough'' (1908) *''Ill-Gotten Gain'' (1909)

As C. Groom

Novels

*''Love in the Darkness'' (1918)

As Mrs. Sydney Groom

Novels

*''Shadows of Desires'' (1919) *''The Mystery of Mr Bernard Brown'' (1920) *''Greatheart'' (1921) *''The Knight Errant'' (1922) *''Sylvia Shale, Detective'' (1924)

K. C. Groom

Novels

*''Phantom Fortune'' (1945) *''The Folly of Fear'' (1947) *''The Recoil'' (1952)

References and sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Groom, Kathleen Clarice British romantic fiction writers 1872 births 1954 deaths People from Hove Australian emigrants to the United Kingdom

Biography

Personal life

Writing career

Bibliography

As Clarice Klein

Short story collection

As Kit Dealtry

Short stories in magazines

Novels

As C. Groom

Novels

As Mrs. Sydney Groom

Novels

K. C. Groom

Novels

See also

References and sources