There are obvious parallels between At Heaven's Gage and Warren's later novel The Cave (1959), particularly in the characters of Sarrett and Ike Sumpter. Both are ambitious opportunists, thwarted by the rejection of a sweetheart, and both make use of others in their climb to power.
Sarrett's wounded egotism takes revenge by murdering Sue; Ike Sumpter might have saved Jasper Herrick and later—to exploit the sensationalism of the event—Sumpter cruelly fabricates messages from the dead Jasper that suggest that Jasper still lives in his retreat in the cave.
Sue also bears some resemblance to the seduced Anne.....
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