George Eliot
Romola
"Romola" by George Eliot is a historical novel written between 1862 and 1863. Set in 1490s Florence during the Italian Renaissance, it follows the scholarly Romola de' Bardi and her marriage to Tito Melema, a charismatic Greek scholar with dangerous secrets. As political upheaval sweeps through Florence under Savonarola's religious fervor, Romola must navigate betrayal, moral awakening, and the collision between personal loyalty and civic duty in a city torn by war, famine, and spiritual revolution.