From the Publisher
Two sisters of opposing temperments who share the pangs of tragic love provide the theme for Jane Austen''s dramatically human narrative. Their mutual suffering brings a closer understanding between the two sisters- and true love finally triumphs when sense gives way to sensibility and sensibility gives way to sense.
About the Author
Jane Austen's life is striking for the contrast between the great
works she wrote in secret and the outward appearance of being quite
dull and ordinary. Austen was born in the small English town of
Steventon in Hampshire, and educated at home by her clergyman
father. She was deeply devoted to her family. For a short time, the
Austens lived in the resort city of Bath, but when her father died,
they returned to Steventon, where Austen lived until her death at
the age of 41. Austen was drawn to literature early, she began
writing novels that satirized both the writers and the manners of
the 1790's. Her sharp sense of humor and keen eye for the
ridiculous in human behavior gave her works lasting appeal. She is
at her best in such books as Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield
Park (1814), and Emma (1816), in which she examines and often
ridicules the behavior of small groups of middle-class characters.
Austen relies heavily on conversations among her characters to
reveal their personalities, and at times her novels read almost
like plays. Several of them have, in fact, been made into
films.
Margaret Drabble was born on June 5, 1939 in Sheffield, England.
She attended The Mount School in York and later Cambridge
University. Her novel "The Millstone won the John Llewelyn Rhys
Prize and she was the recipient of the James Tait Black and E. M.
Forster awards. She was also awarded a Society of Authors
Travelling Fellowship in the 1960s and the CBE in 1980.
Mary Balogh was born in Swansea, Wales, on March 24, 1944. She
received a B.A. with honors from the University of Wales in 1965.
From 1967 to 1988 she taught high school English in Saskatchewan,
Canada, becoming principal of her school in 1982. Mary Balogh has
written more than 50 novels and has received a lifetime achievement
award for her work in the genre of historical romance. Her works
include The Wood Nymph (1986), Christmas Promise (1992), The Plumed
Bonnet (1996) and Famous Heroine (1996). Balogh's plots explore
social intrigue among the British upper classes, enlivened by
precise Regency period details in her characters' clothing and
customs. During this period in British history (1811-1820) King
George III was declared insane and Parliament named the King's son
the Prince Regent, the future King George IV, as ruler. Balogh
lives in Saskatchewan.
Mass Market Paperbound
336 Pages, 4.25 x 6.85 x 0.95 in
October 4, 2011
New American Library
English
0451531019
9780451531018