Frances Burney
Evelina is the unacknowledged but legitimate daughter of a dissipated English aristocrat. She is raised in rural seclusion until her seventeenth birthday. Evelina must learn to navigate the complex layers of eighteenth-century society and catch the attention of a distinguished nobleman with whom she can begin a romantic relationship. Her innocence will either be to her benefit or her downfall. Evalina was first published anonymously in 1778, but Burney was outed as its author by poet George Huddesford later that year. This sentimental novel, which has notions of sensibility and early romanticism, satirizes the society in which it is set. It is a significant precursor to the work of Jane Austen and Maria Edgeworth, whose novels explore many of the same issues. This case laminate collector’s edition includes a Victorian-inspired dust jacket.
