Promotional Information

Often acclaimed as her greatest and most mature work, Charlotte Bronte's last, most autobiographical novel drew on her own unhappy experiences as a governess in Brussels to create a powerful study of unrequited love.

About the Author

Charlotte Bronte (1816-55) was born in Thornton, Yorkshire, one of an extraordinary group of siblings who spent their time immersed in reading and writing and between them went on to change the nature of English fiction. Publishing under the pseudonym Currer Bell, Charlotte was a great friend of Elizabeth Gaskell, who wrote her biography, as well as William Makepeace Thackeray and George Henry Lewes. Bronte's novels Jane Eyre and Shirley are also published in the Penguin English Library.