Lady Susan Vernon, a charming and manipulative widow, schemes to secure advantageous marriages for herself and her reluctant daughter in Austen's witty epistolary novel. Written in the 1790s but published posthumously in 1871, this sharp work of English fiction reveals Austen's talent for crafting morally complex characters through exchanged letters.
MY DEAR BROTHER,—I can no longer refuse myself the pleasure of profiting by your kind invitation when we last parted of spending some weeks with you at Churchhill, and, therefore, if quite convenient to you and Mrs. Vernon to receive me at present, I shall hope within a few days to be introduced to a sister whom I have so long desired to be acquainted with. My kind friends here are most affectionately urgent with me to prolong my stay, but their hospitable and cheerful dispositions lead them too much into society for my present situation and state of mind; and I impatiently look forward to the hour when I shall be admitted into your delightful retirement. I long to be made known to your dear little children, in whose hearts I shall be very eager to secure an interest. I shall soon have need for all my fortitude, as I am on the point of separation from my own daughter. The long illness of…Continue reading →
A brilliant English novelist of the early 19th century, she crafted witty social comedies that exposed the constraints facing women in Regency England. Her six novels, including Pride and Prejudice and Emma, revolutionized literature with their sharp psychological insight and sparkling dialogue, establishing her as one of history's most beloved storytellers. All works by Jane Austen →
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