Subject
Married people -- Fiction Books
Best books
George Eliot
Middlemarch
"Middlemarch" by George Eliot is a novel published in 1871-1872. Set in a fictional English Midlands town from 1829 to 1832, it weaves together multiple intersecting stories exploring the status of women, marriage, idealism, and political reform. The narrative follows Dorothea Brooke's search for purpose, Dr. Lydgate's medical ambitions, and several other inhabitants navigating love, debt, scandal, and social change against the backdrop of the approaching Reform Act of 1832.
Charlotte Brontë
Jane Eyre: An Autobiography
"Jane Eyre: An Autobiography" by Charlotte Brontë is a novel published in 1847. It follows the life of Jane Eyre from her oppressed childhood through her education and into adulthood, where she becomes governess at Thornfield Hall and falls in love with the mysterious Mr. Rochester. Told through intimate first-person narrative, this groundbreaking bildungsroman explores moral and spiritual development while addressing class, religion, sexuality, and feminism. The story unfolds across five distinct stages, each shaping Jane's journey toward independence and belonging.
James Joyce
Ulysses
"Ulysses" by James Joyce is a modernist novel published in 1922. It chronicles one day in Dublin—June 16, 1904—following three characters whose experiences mirror Homer's Odyssey. Leopold Bloom parallels Odysseus, his wife Molly echoes Penelope, and Stephen Dedalus reflects Telemachus. Through experimental prose styles and stream of consciousness technique, Joyce explores themes of identity, Irish life, and human consciousness. The novel's complexity, literary allusions, and revolutionary approach to depicting thought have made it one of modernism's most celebrated and debated works.
Frank Norris
McTeague: A Story of San Francisco
"McTeague: A Story of San Francisco" by Frank Norris is a novel published in 1899. It follows a San Francisco dentist and his wife as their marriage disintegrates into violence and tragedy, driven by jealousy, greed, and obsession with money. When McTeague loses his dental practice through betrayal, the couple descends into poverty while his wife's miserly hoarding intensifies. Their story builds toward a devastating climax in the desolate wasteland of Death Valley, where past grievances and stolen gold lead to a final, haunting confrontation.
Agatha Christie
The Secret Adversary
"The Secret Adversary" by Agatha Christie is a detective novel published in January 1922. Two unemployed young friends, Tommy and Tuppence, form a business seeking adventure and quickly find themselves entangled in a dangerous conspiracy involving a missing woman, a secret treaty from the Lusitania, and a mysterious criminal mastermind known only as "Mr. Brown." Their investigation leads them through deception, kidnapping, and betrayal as they race to recover the treaty before it destabilizes the British government.
Edith Wharton
Ethan Frome
"Ethan Frome" by Edith Wharton is a novella published in 1911. Set in the harsh winter landscape of rural Massachusetts, it tells the story of a man trapped in a loveless marriage who falls deeply in love with his wife's young cousin. As passion conflicts with duty and circumstance, their forbidden connection leads toward a desperate act with devastating consequences. This tragic tale explores how desire, obligation, and fate can intertwine to shape lives in unexpected and irreversible ways.
Edith Wharton
The Age of Innocence
"The Age of Innocence" by Edith Wharton is a novel published in 1920. Set in 1870s upper-class New York society, it follows Newland Archer, a gentleman lawyer preparing to marry the beautiful but sheltered May Welland. His secure world shifts when May's unconventional cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska, arrives from Europe, fleeing a scandalous marriage. As Newland grows fascinated by Ellen's bold defiance of social rules, he faces an agonizing choice between duty and desire in a world where appearances matter more than truth.
F. Scott (Francis Scott) Fitzgerald
The Beautiful and Damned
"The Beautiful and Damned" by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a novel published in 1922. Set in Jazz Age New York, it follows young heir Anthony Patch and his beautiful flapper wife Gloria Gilbert as they pursue a life of parties and excess. Their vow to live without regret and seek happiness at any cost soon tests their marriage as infatuation fades and selfish attitudes collide. While awaiting Anthony's inheritance, the couple descends into hedonism and cynicism, facing consequences that threaten to destroy everything they once were.
Henry Kitchell Webster
The Real Adventure
"The Real Adventure" by Henry Kitchell Webster is a novel written in the early 20th century. The book follows the lives of various characters, particularly focusing on Rosalind Stanton and her complex relationships as she navigates her journey towards self-discovery, romance, and the societal expectations of her time. Through her interactions with the professor, her family, and her peers, themes of love, ambition, and personal growth begin to unfold. At the start of the novel, we are introduced to a professor's lecture, where Rosalind, amused by his facetious advice about marriage, becomes the focal point of his attention. Despite his irritation at her distraction, it’s evident that she captivates him. Following the class, she leaves with a sprightly demeanor, contrasting the previous weightiness of the academic atmosphere. As she heads home, she experiences a confrontational but enlightening moment with a streetcar conductor, ultimately leading to an unexpected connection with Rodney Aldrich, a man who appears to share her spirited outlook on life. This pivotal encounter sets the stage for the evolving dynamics between the characters and their respective adventures, both romantic and intellectual.
Ford Madox Ford
The Good Soldier
"The Good Soldier" by Ford Madox Ford is a novel published in 1915. Set just before World War I, it chronicles the seemingly perfect marriage of Edward Ashburnham and his friendships with two American couples. Told through flashbacks by an unreliable narrator, the story gradually reveals hidden affairs, deceptions, and tragedies that shatter the facade of respectability. Using pioneering literary impressionism, Ford masterfully unveils how nothing in these relationships is as it first appears, leading to devastating consequences for all involved.
W. Somerset (William Somerset) Maugham
The Painted Veil
"The Painted Veil" by W. Somerset Maugham is a novel published in 1925. When a frivolous young woman enters a loveless marriage and begins an affair in Hong Kong, her betrayed husband presents her with a devastating choice: accompany him to a cholera-ravaged village in mainland China or face public divorce. Forced into a dangerous epidemic zone, she embarks on an unexpected journey of self-discovery among French nuns and suffering villagers, confronting her own shallow nature and witnessing her husband's hidden depths.
Anthony Trollope
He Knew He Was Right
"He Knew He Was Right" by Anthony Trollope is a novel written in 1869. A marriage crumbles when a wealthy husband's jealousy over his wife's innocent friendship spirals into obsession. His wife's stubborn refusal to submit to his unreasonable demands drives them further apart, leading to separation and madness. Meanwhile, romantic entanglements unfold among their friends and relatives, as suitors compete and families scheme. Trollope weaves multiple interwoven stories of love, pride, and the devastating consequences of inflexibility in this exploration of Victorian marriage and society.
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