50 Books like The House of Mirth

The Transit of Venus

by Shirley Hazzard

An Australian orphan loves a playwright she cannot have, blind to the astronomer who waits.

4.01

5k+

🎭 Literary Tragedy 💔 Doomed Affair 🥺 Unrequited Love 🥀 Quiet Devastation 🇬🇧 Postwar England

The Transit of Venus 89%

An Australian orphan loves a playwright she cannot have, blind to the astronomer who waits.

by Shirley Hazzard 1980

4.01

5k+ ratings

🎭 Literary Tragedy 💔 Doomed Affair 🥺 Unrequited Love 🥀 Quiet Devastation 🇬🇧 Postwar England

The Age of Innocence

by Edith Wharton • 1920

An engaged New York lawyer falls for his fiancée's cousin, a countess who fled her marriage.

3.97

198k+

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💔 Forbidden Love ⚖️ Duty Versus Desire 🎭 Unconventional Woman 🥀 Restrained Longing

The Age of Innocence 96%

An engaged New York lawyer falls for his fiancée's cousin, a countess who fled her marriage.

by Edith Wharton 1920

3.97

198k+ ratings

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💔 Forbidden Love ⚖️ Duty Versus Desire 🎭 Unconventional Woman 🥀 Restrained Longing

The Buccaneers

by Edith Wharton • 1938

Snubbed by New York, Nan St George sails to England to hunt a title, whatever the price.

3.85

9k+

🏙️ Gilded Age 🎭 Social Satire 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 💔 Forbidden Love 🏰 Gilded Cage

The Buccaneers 95%

Snubbed by New York, Nan St George sails to England to hunt a title, whatever the price.

by Edith Wharton 1938

3.85

9k+ ratings

🏙️ Gilded Age 🎭 Social Satire 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 💔 Forbidden Love 🏰 Gilded Cage

The Stoic

by Theodore Dreiser • 1947

His empire crumbling, an American financier stakes everything on London and a much younger muse.

4.35

3k+

🏭 Naturalist Fiction 💰 Gilded Age 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Loveless Marriage 🏗️ Empire Building

The Stoic 92%

His empire crumbling, an American financier stakes everything on London and a much younger muse.

by Theodore Dreiser 1947

4.35

3k+ ratings

🏭 Naturalist Fiction 💰 Gilded Age 📈 Social Climbing 💔 Loveless Marriage 🏗️ Empire Building

Martin Eden

by Jack London • 1909

A sailor meets a refined girl and destroys himself trying to become worthy of her love.

4.48

56k+

🔨 Working Class Fiction 🏛️ Gilded Age Fiction 💔 Doomed Ambition 🎨 Artist As Outsider 💕 Class Divide Romance

Martin Eden 91%

A sailor meets a refined girl and destroys himself trying to become worthy of her love.

by Jack London 1909

4.48

56k+ ratings

🔨 Working Class Fiction 🏛️ Gilded Age Fiction 💔 Doomed Ambition 🎨 Artist As Outsider 💕 Class Divide Romance

A Well-Behaved Woman

by Therese Anne Fowler • 2018

Her family ruined, Alva Smith marries a Vanderbilt. But old New York keeps its gates shut tight.

3.96

24k+

🏛️ Biographical Novel 🪜 Social Climbing 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 🥀 Mother-Daughter Conflict 💔 Betrayed Wife

A Well-Behaved Woman 91%

Her family ruined, Alva Smith marries a Vanderbilt. But old New York keeps its gates shut tight.

by Therese Anne Fowler 2018

3.96

24k+ ratings

🏛️ Biographical Novel 🪜 Social Climbing 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 🥀 Mother-Daughter Conflict 💔 Betrayed Wife

The Social Graces

by Renée Rosen • 2021

In Gilded Age New York, an old-money queen and an ambitious newcomer battle for society’s throne.

3.98

16k+

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💎 Old Money New Money 🚪 Ambitious Outsider ⚔️ Female Rivalry 📰 Society Scandal

The Social Graces 91%

In Gilded Age New York, an old-money queen and an ambitious newcomer battle for society’s throne.

by Renée Rosen 2021

3.98

16k+ ratings

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💎 Old Money New Money 🚪 Ambitious Outsider ⚔️ Female Rivalry 📰 Society Scandal

Appointment in Samarra

by John O'Hara • 1934

One drunken insult at the country club: a Cadillac dealer learns his small town never forgets.

3.81

16k+

🏘️ American Small Town 📋 Social Realism 📉 Downward Spiral 💰 Class Anxiety 💔 Marriage Under Strain

Appointment in Samarra 91%

One drunken insult at the country club: a Cadillac dealer learns his small town never forgets.

by John O'Hara 1934

3.81

16k+ ratings

🏘️ American Small Town 📋 Social Realism 📉 Downward Spiral 💰 Class Anxiety 💔 Marriage Under Strain

Mr. Bridge

by Evan S. Connell • 1969

A Kansas City attorney orders his family's life with quiet precision, mistaking provision for love.

4.00

3k+

📖 Character Study 🎩 Novel Of Manners 👔 Repressed Patriarch 💔 Unspoken Love 🌉 Generational Divide

Mr. Bridge 90%

A Kansas City attorney orders his family's life with quiet precision, mistaking provision for love.

by Evan S. Connell 1969

4.00

3k+ ratings

📖 Character Study 🎩 Novel Of Manners 👔 Repressed Patriarch 💔 Unspoken Love 🌉 Generational Divide

The Awakening

by Kate Chopin • 1899

A New Orleans wife awakens to desire. Society has no room for the woman she becomes.

3.69

229k+

🕊️ Female Autonomy 💔 Marital Discontent 🚫 Forbidden Love 🎭 Creole Society 🤫 Quiet Rebellion

The Awakening 90%

A New Orleans wife awakens to desire. Society has no room for the woman she becomes.

by Kate Chopin 1899

3.69

229k+ ratings

🕊️ Female Autonomy 💔 Marital Discontent 🚫 Forbidden Love 🎭 Creole Society 🤫 Quiet Rebellion

Rules of Civility

by Amor Towles • 2011

A sharp Brooklyn secretary navigates 1938 Manhattan high society after one New Year's encounter.

4.09

273k+

🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Love Triangle 💪 Self-Made Woman 🎩 Manners And Society 🕰️ Bittersweet Nostalgia

Rules of Civility 90%

A sharp Brooklyn secretary navigates 1938 Manhattan high society after one New Year's encounter.

by Amor Towles 2011

4.09

273k+ ratings

🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Love Triangle 💪 Self-Made Woman 🎩 Manners And Society 🕰️ Bittersweet Nostalgia

Revolutionary Road

by Richard Yates • 1961

Frank and April Wheeler are sure they're exceptional. Their suburban marriage says otherwise.

3.93

94k+

📚 Midcentury American Fiction 🏡 Suburban Disillusionment 💔 Marriage As Prison 🎭 Performative Domesticity 🔒 Claustrophobic Atmosphere

Revolutionary Road 90%

Frank and April Wheeler are sure they're exceptional. Their suburban marriage says otherwise.

by Richard Yates 1961

3.93

94k+ ratings

📚 Midcentury American Fiction 🏡 Suburban Disillusionment 💔 Marriage As Prison 🎭 Performative Domesticity 🔒 Claustrophobic Atmosphere

The Second Mrs. Astor

by Shana Abe • 2021

A teenager marries America's richest man, and a scandalized society drives them onto the Titanic.

3.96

74k+

🏛️ Gilded Age 💐 Age Gap Romance 🖤 Doomed Love 🌊 Survivor's Guilt 🕰️ Edwardian

The Second Mrs. Astor 90%

A teenager marries America's richest man, and a scandalized society drives them onto the Titanic.

by Shana Abe 2021

3.96

74k+ ratings

🏛️ Gilded Age 💐 Age Gap Romance 🖤 Doomed Love 🌊 Survivor's Guilt 🕰️ Edwardian

Stoner

by John Williams • 1965

William Stoner turns from the soil to the sonnet, and a quiet, unremarkable life begins.

4.36

260k+

📚 Campus Novel 🖋️ Quiet Life Portrait 💔 Unhappy Marriage ❤️‍🔥 Forbidden Love Affair 🪨 Stoic Protagonist

Stoner 90%

William Stoner turns from the soil to the sonnet, and a quiet, unremarkable life begins.

by John Williams 1965

4.36

260k+ ratings

📚 Campus Novel 🖋️ Quiet Life Portrait 💔 Unhappy Marriage ❤️‍🔥 Forbidden Love Affair 🪨 Stoic Protagonist

The Beautiful and Damned

by F. Scott Fitzgerald • 1922

Parties, gin, and the long wait for an inheritance hollow out a golden Jazz Age couple.

3.73

66k+

🗽 Jazz Age Novel 💔 Doomed Love 💰 Idle Rich 🥀 Fading Beauty ⚖️ Inheritance Plot

The Beautiful and Damned 90%

Parties, gin, and the long wait for an inheritance hollow out a golden Jazz Age couple.

by F. Scott Fitzgerald 1922

3.73

66k+ ratings

🗽 Jazz Age Novel 💔 Doomed Love 💰 Idle Rich 🥀 Fading Beauty ⚖️ Inheritance Plot

Of Human Bondage

by W. Somerset Maugham • 1915

A clubfoot medical student in Edwardian London destroys his life for a waitress who feels nothing.

4.16

62k+

🔥 Obsessive Love 📖 Classic Bildungsroman 💔 Toxic Relationship 🤔 Philosophical Fiction ⏳ Edwardian England

Of Human Bondage 89%

A clubfoot medical student in Edwardian London destroys his life for a waitress who feels nothing.

by W. Somerset Maugham 1915

4.16

62k+ ratings

🔥 Obsessive Love 📖 Classic Bildungsroman 💔 Toxic Relationship 🤔 Philosophical Fiction ⏳ Edwardian England

Women in Love

by D.H. Lawrence • 1920

In Edwardian England, two sisters seek love: one a spiritual union, the other a destructive passion.

3.66

34k+

🖤 Philosophical Romance 👭 Sisters 💔 Parallel Love Stories 🔥 Toxic Passion 🎨 Artistic Ambition

Women in Love 89%

In Edwardian England, two sisters seek love: one a spiritual union, the other a destructive passion.

by D.H. Lawrence 1920

3.66

34k+ ratings

🖤 Philosophical Romance 👭 Sisters 💔 Parallel Love Stories 🔥 Toxic Passion 🎨 Artistic Ambition

The Custom of the Country

by Edith Wharton • 1913

A small-town beauty carries herself into old New York, where acceptance only sharpens her appetite.

4.07

16k+

🎭 Novel Of Manners 🥂 Gilded Age New York 🏙️ Social Climber 💔 Doomed Marriage 🗼 Belle ÉPoque Paris

The Custom of the Country 95%

A small-town beauty carries herself into old New York, where acceptance only sharpens her appetite.

by Edith Wharton 1913

4.07

16k+ ratings

🎭 Novel Of Manners 🥂 Gilded Age New York 🏙️ Social Climber 💔 Doomed Marriage 🗼 Belle ÉPoque Paris

Washington Square

by Henry James • 1880

A plain, shy heiress is courted by a charming man her father calls a fortune hunter.

3.71

26k+

🧠 Psychological Realism 💰 Fortune Hunter 🌸 Quiet Heroine 🏠 Father-Daughter Conflict 😔 Melancholy

Washington Square 95%

A plain, shy heiress is courted by a charming man her father calls a fortune hunter.

by Henry James 1880

3.71

26k+ ratings

🧠 Psychological Realism 💰 Fortune Hunter 🌸 Quiet Heroine 🏠 Father-Daughter Conflict 😔 Melancholy

The Great Gatsby

by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Gatsby's mansion teemed with strangers. The woman he loved was across the bay, married to another.

3.93

6.0M+

🥂 Roaring Twenties 💔 Obsessive Love 👁️ Unreliable Narrator 💰 Old Money Vs New Money 🍂 Elegiac

The Great Gatsby 88%

Gatsby's mansion teemed with strangers. The woman he loved was across the bay, married to another.

by F. Scott Fitzgerald 1925

3.93

6.0M+ ratings

🥂 Roaring Twenties 💔 Obsessive Love 👁️ Unreliable Narrator 💰 Old Money Vs New Money 🍂 Elegiac

The Second Mrs. Astor

by Shana Abe • 2021

At eighteen she married a scandal-ridden tycoon. Their honeymoon escape ended on the Titanic.

4.09

265

📜 Biographical Fiction 💞 Age Gap Romance 🕰️ Edwardian Era 🚢 Titanic Sinking 👁️ Public Eye

The Second Mrs. Astor 89%

At eighteen she married a scandal-ridden tycoon. Their honeymoon escape ended on the Titanic.

by Shana Abe 2021

4.09

265 ratings

📜 Biographical Fiction 💞 Age Gap Romance 🕰️ Edwardian Era 🚢 Titanic Sinking 👁️ Public Eye

The Forsyth Saga

by John Galsworthy • 1921

A possessive husband drives his wife away. A generation later, their children fall in love.

4.19

21k+

🌳 Family Saga 🎭 Social Critique 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Obsessive Love ⛓️ Generational Conflict

The Forsyth Saga 89%

A possessive husband drives his wife away. A generation later, their children fall in love.

by John Galsworthy 1921

4.19

21k+ ratings

🌳 Family Saga 🎭 Social Critique 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Obsessive Love ⛓️ Generational Conflict

The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope by Anthony Trollope

by Anthony Trollope • 1875

A foreign financier dazzles London, and the city's best families gamble their futures on his word.

4.09

14k+

📈 Financial Speculation 🏛️ London Society 💰 Fortune Hunter 🏰 Gilded Cage Heiress 🎲 Gambling Addiction

The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope by Anthony Trollope Summary

The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope by Anthony Trollope 89%

A foreign financier dazzles London, and the city's best families gamble their futures on his word.

by Anthony Trollope 1875

4.09

14k+ ratings

📈 Financial Speculation 🏛️ London Society 💰 Fortune Hunter 🏰 Gilded Cage Heiress 🎲 Gambling Addiction

Jude the Obscure

by Thomas Hardy • 1895

A stonemason dreams of Oxford, but love for his cousin and a cruel marriage ruin him.

3.84

76k+

❤️ Forbidden Love 🎓 Thwarted Ambition 💍 Marriage Critique 🌧️ Relentlessly Bleak 🕰️ Victorian England

Jude the Obscure 89%

A stonemason dreams of Oxford, but love for his cousin and a cruel marriage ruin him.

by Thomas Hardy 1895

3.84

76k+ ratings

❤️ Forbidden Love 🎓 Thwarted Ambition 💍 Marriage Critique 🌧️ Relentlessly Bleak 🕰️ Victorian England

Madame Bovary

by Gustave Flaubert • 2004

To escape provincial boredom, a doctor's wife pursues lovers and luxury until the debts close in.

3.71

384k+

🖋️ Literary Realism 🏘️ Provincial Discontent 💔 Romantic Disillusion 💍 Marital Infidelity 🎩 Bourgeois Satire

Madame Bovary 89%

To escape provincial boredom, a doctor's wife pursues lovers and luxury until the debts close in.

by Gustave Flaubert 2004

3.71

384k+ ratings

🖋️ Literary Realism 🏘️ Provincial Discontent 💔 Romantic Disillusion 💍 Marital Infidelity 🎩 Bourgeois Satire

Anna Karenina

by Leo Tolstoy • 1878

A married aristocrat's affair with a young officer costs her everything in unforgiving Russia.

4.10

941k+

🇷🇺 Russian Classic 🖤 Tragic Romance 🏛️ Aristocratic Society 💔 Societal Scandal 🥀 Tragic Heroine

Anna Karenina 89%

A married aristocrat's affair with a young officer costs her everything in unforgiving Russia.

by Leo Tolstoy 1878

4.10

941k+ ratings

🇷🇺 Russian Classic 🖤 Tragic Romance 🏛️ Aristocratic Society 💔 Societal Scandal 🥀 Tragic Heroine

The Luxe

by Anna Godbersen • 2007

An 1899 heiress trapped by a strategic engagement risks everything for the coachman she loves.

3.65

74k+

📍 Gilded Age New York 💕 Love Triangle 💌 Secret Romance 💔 Forbidden Love 😈 Scheming Socialite

The Luxe 89%

An 1899 heiress trapped by a strategic engagement risks everything for the coachman she loves.

by Anna Godbersen 2007

3.65

74k+ ratings

📍 Gilded Age New York 💕 Love Triangle 💌 Secret Romance 💔 Forbidden Love 😈 Scheming Socialite

Angle of Repose

by Wallace Stegner • 1971

A crippled historian excavates frontier letters, hunting the fractures that mirror his own collapse.

4.24

62k+

📝 Epistolary Narrative 🔄 Dual Timeline 💒 Frontier Marriage 💔 Hidden Infidelity 🏔️ Stoic Endurance

Angle of Repose 89%

A crippled historian excavates frontier letters, hunting the fractures that mirror his own collapse.

by Wallace Stegner 1971

4.24

62k+ ratings

📝 Epistolary Narrative 🔄 Dual Timeline 💒 Frontier Marriage 💔 Hidden Infidelity 🏔️ Stoic Endurance

Ifigenia

by Teresa de la Parra • 1924

Europe freed her. Caracas demands a proper husband and the quiet burial of her desires.

4.06

573

✉️ Epistolary Novel 🌎 Latin American Classic ⚖️ Duty Over Desire 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Trapped By Society

Ifigenia 89%

Europe freed her. Caracas demands a proper husband and the quiet burial of her desires.

by Teresa de la Parra 1924

4.06

573 ratings

✉️ Epistolary Novel 🌎 Latin American Classic ⚖️ Duty Over Desire 💔 Forbidden Love 🔒 Trapped By Society

East of Eden

by John Steinbeck • 1952

Early 1900s California: a farmer's twin sons inherit a mother's malice and a father's fragile hope.

4.44

657k+

🏠 Multigenerational Saga ✝️ Biblical Allegory 🏜️ American West ⚔️ Sibling Rivalry 💋 Femme Fatale

East of Eden 89%

Early 1900s California: a farmer's twin sons inherit a mother's malice and a father's fragile hope.

by John Steinbeck 1952

4.44

657k+ ratings

🏠 Multigenerational Saga ✝️ Biblical Allegory 🏜️ American West ⚔️ Sibling Rivalry 💋 Femme Fatale

The Game

by Jack London • 1905

A boxer promises his bride one last fight. She disguises herself as a man to watch.

3.73

2k+

🖤 Tragic Romance 🥊 Boxing Drama 🎭 Naturalist Tragedy 💔 Doomed Athlete 🔀 Divided Loyalties

The Game 89%

A boxer promises his bride one last fight. She disguises herself as a man to watch.

by Jack London 1905

3.73

2k+ ratings

🖤 Tragic Romance 🥊 Boxing Drama 🎭 Naturalist Tragedy 💔 Doomed Athlete 🔀 Divided Loyalties

Spring Snow

by Yukio Mishima • 1967

Taisho Japan: an aristocrat's passion for a woman promised to the imperial family consumes his life.

4.16

24k+

💔 Forbidden Love 🥀 Tragic Romance 🇯🇵 Early 20th Century Japan 👘 Japanese Aristocracy ⚖️ Duty Vs Desire

Spring Snow 88%

Taisho Japan: an aristocrat's passion for a woman promised to the imperial family consumes his life.

by Yukio Mishima 1967

4.16

24k+ ratings

💔 Forbidden Love 🥀 Tragic Romance 🇯🇵 Early 20th Century Japan 👘 Japanese Aristocracy ⚖️ Duty Vs Desire

The Lioness of Boston

by Emily Franklin • 2023

A New York heiress marries into Boston society and discovers every door is bolted shut.

3.64

10k+

🏛️ Gilded Age Boston 🚪 Outsider In Society 🏗️ Woman Builds Legacy 🎨 Grief Into Art 👥 Chosen Family

The Lioness of Boston 88%

A New York heiress marries into Boston society and discovers every door is bolted shut.

by Emily Franklin 2023

3.64

10k+ ratings

🏛️ Gilded Age Boston 🚪 Outsider In Society 🏗️ Woman Builds Legacy 🎨 Grief Into Art 👥 Chosen Family

Sense and Sensibility

by Jane Austen • 1811

A restrained sister hides her heartbreak while her passionate sister falls for a man with secrets.

4.09

1.3M+

🎭 Comedy Of Manners 👑 Regency Romance 👯 Sisterly Bond 🔥 Slow Burn Romance 🧊 Reserved Heroine

Sense and Sensibility 88%

A restrained sister hides her heartbreak while her passionate sister falls for a man with secrets.

by Jane Austen 1811

4.09

1.3M+ ratings

🎭 Comedy Of Manners 👑 Regency Romance 👯 Sisterly Bond 🔥 Slow Burn Romance 🧊 Reserved Heroine

Pineapple Street

by Jenny Jackson

Marrying a Stockton heir: a limestone mansion plus forty years of his family still in residence.

3.55

212k+

🏠 Family Saga 🎭 Social Satire 🏙️ Old Money New York 👀 Outsider In The Family 🔥 Forbidden Affair

Pineapple Street 88%

Marrying a Stockton heir: a limestone mansion plus forty years of his family still in residence.

by Jenny Jackson 2023

3.55

212k+ ratings

🏠 Family Saga 🎭 Social Satire 🏙️ Old Money New York 👀 Outsider In The Family 🔥 Forbidden Affair

The Portrait of a Lady, Volume 1

by Henry James • 1881

Her inheritance bought her Europe and a season of suitors. She intends to refuse them all.

3.93

593

🧠 Psychological Realism 🎭 Novel Of Manners 💪 Independent Heroine 💍 Marriage As Trap 💰 Inheritance Plot

The Portrait of a Lady, Volume 1 Summary

The Portrait of a Lady, Volume 1 93%

Her inheritance bought her Europe and a season of suitors. She intends to refuse them all.

by Henry James 1881

3.93

593 ratings

🧠 Psychological Realism 🎭 Novel Of Manners 💪 Independent Heroine 💍 Marriage As Trap 💰 Inheritance Plot

Daisy Miller

by Henry James • 1879

In Europe, an American girl flouts convention, and one man can't decide: innocent or reckless flirt?

3.37

38k+

🗽 American Abroad 🥀 Tragic Heroine 👥 Social Ostracism ❓ Ambiguous Innocence 👁️ Unreliable Observer

Daisy Miller 93%

In Europe, an American girl flouts convention, and one man can't decide: innocent or reckless flirt?

by Henry James 1879

3.37

38k+ ratings

🗽 American Abroad 🥀 Tragic Heroine 👥 Social Ostracism ❓ Ambiguous Innocence 👁️ Unreliable Observer

The Painted Veil

by W. Somerset Maugham • 1925

An unfaithful colonial wife follows her betrayed husband into a cholera epidemic in rural China.

3.98

53k+

🏛️ Colonial Expat Life 💔 Loveless Marriage 📖 Literary Infidelity 🌅 Moral Awakening 🦠 Epidemic Journey

The Painted Veil 88%

An unfaithful colonial wife follows her betrayed husband into a cholera epidemic in rural China.

by W. Somerset Maugham 1925

3.98

53k+ ratings

🏛️ Colonial Expat Life 💔 Loveless Marriage 📖 Literary Infidelity 🌅 Moral Awakening 🦠 Epidemic Journey

Fates and Furies

by Lauren Groff • 2015

Lotto thinks their marriage is destiny. Mathilde knows what she paid to keep it that way.

3.59

149k+

🖼️ Marriage Portrait 👥 Dual Perspective 🔐 Secret Past 🎭 Muse And Artist 💔 Tragic Romance

Fates and Furies 88%

Lotto thinks their marriage is destiny. Mathilde knows what she paid to keep it that way.

by Lauren Groff 2015

3.59

149k+ ratings

🖼️ Marriage Portrait 👥 Dual Perspective 🔐 Secret Past 🎭 Muse And Artist 💔 Tragic Romance

O Pioneers!

by Willa Cather • 1913

A Swedish immigrant's daughter inherits the Nebraska farm and bets on land the neighbors abandon.

3.90

59k+

🏡 Pioneer Fiction 👩‍🌾 Female Pioneer 🧳 Immigrant Saga 💔 Forbidden Love 🔥 Slow Burn Romance

O Pioneers! 88%

A Swedish immigrant's daughter inherits the Nebraska farm and bets on land the neighbors abandon.

by Willa Cather 1913

3.90

59k+ ratings

🏡 Pioneer Fiction 👩‍🌾 Female Pioneer 🧳 Immigrant Saga 💔 Forbidden Love 🔥 Slow Burn Romance

Tess of the D’Urbervilles

by Thomas Hardy • 1891

A peasant sent to claim kin meets a charming heir. His crime will become her ruin.

3.84

305k+

🥀 Pastoral Tragedy 👩‍🦰 Fallen Woman Narrative 🔺 Tragic Love Triangle ⚖️ Victorian Morality 🌾 Bleak Pastoral

Tess of the D’Urbervilles 88%

A peasant sent to claim kin meets a charming heir. His crime will become her ruin.

by Thomas Hardy 1891

3.84

305k+ ratings

🥀 Pastoral Tragedy 👩‍🦰 Fallen Woman Narrative 🔺 Tragic Love Triangle ⚖️ Victorian Morality 🌾 Bleak Pastoral

Gone with the Wind

by Margaret Mitchell • 1936

War burns down her world. Starvation sharpens her. The men she marries are just survival.

4.31

1.3M+

🏛️ Antebellum South ⚔️ Civil War Epic 💚 Morally Gray Heroine 💔 Unrequited Love 🥀 Tragic Romance

Gone with the Wind 88%

War burns down her world. Starvation sharpens her. The men she marries are just survival.

by Margaret Mitchell 1936

4.31

1.3M+ ratings

🏛️ Antebellum South ⚔️ Civil War Epic 💚 Morally Gray Heroine 💔 Unrequited Love 🥀 Tragic Romance

Mariana

by Monica Dickens • 1940

Through a storm, Mary Shannon waits for her husband's ship and relives a lifetime of love.

3.90

3k+

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Interwar Britain 🌅 Bittersweet Nostalgia 🌿 English Countryside 🎭 Artistic Ambition 💔 Unrequited Love

Mariana 88%

Through a storm, Mary Shannon waits for her husband's ship and relives a lifetime of love.

by Monica Dickens 1940

3.90

3k+ ratings

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Interwar Britain 🌅 Bittersweet Nostalgia 🌿 English Countryside 🎭 Artistic Ambition 💔 Unrequited Love

The Fountainhead

by Ayn Rand • 1943

An architect who refuses to imitate faces a society determined to crush his vision.

3.89

339k+

🧠 Philosophical Novel 🏛️ Architectural Fiction ⚔️ Genius Vs Society 🖤 Self-Destructive Love 📰 Media Mogul

The Fountainhead 88%

An architect who refuses to imitate faces a society determined to crush his vision.

by Ayn Rand 1943

3.89

339k+ ratings

🧠 Philosophical Novel 🏛️ Architectural Fiction ⚔️ Genius Vs Society 🖤 Self-Destructive Love 📰 Media Mogul

The Remains of the Day

by Kazuo Ishiguro • 1989

An English butler's countryside trip finally asks what a life of perfect service has cost him.

4.14

367k+

🖤 Emotional Repression 💔 Duty Over Love 🫢 Unspoken Longing 🎭 Self-Deception 🌧️ Melancholy

The Remains of the Day 88%

An English butler's countryside trip finally asks what a life of perfect service has cost him.

by Kazuo Ishiguro 1989

4.14

367k+ ratings

🖤 Emotional Repression 💔 Duty Over Love 🫢 Unspoken Longing 🎭 Self-Deception 🌧️ Melancholy

A Handful of Dust

by Evelyn Waugh • 1934

His wife's betrayal sends a country squire into the Amazon, where rescue becomes a life sentence.

3.88

29k+

🎭 Satire Of Manners 🏰 English Country House 🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Doomed Marriage 🕰️ Interwar England

A Handful of Dust 88%

His wife's betrayal sends a country squire into the Amazon, where rescue becomes a life sentence.

by Evelyn Waugh 1934

3.88

29k+ ratings

🎭 Satire Of Manners 🏰 English Country House 🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Doomed Marriage 🕰️ Interwar England

Rich Man, Poor Man

by Irwin Shaw • 1970

Immigrant baker's three children chase success from a gritty Hudson town, but violence haunts them.

4.19

39k+

📖 Family Saga 🧬 Generational Trauma 🗽 American Dream 🔄 Cycles Of Violence 💔 Dysfunctional Family

Rich Man, Poor Man 88%

Immigrant baker's three children chase success from a gritty Hudson town, but violence haunts them.

by Irwin Shaw 1970

4.19

39k+ ratings

📖 Family Saga 🧬 Generational Trauma 🗽 American Dream 🔄 Cycles Of Violence 💔 Dysfunctional Family

The Mayor of Casterbridge

by Thomas Hardy • 1886

He sells his wife at a country fair. Years later, as mayor, his past resurfaces.

3.87

67k+

🎭 Victorian Tragedy 🔄 Rise And Fall 😳 Public Shame 🤫 Family Secrets 💼 Business Rivalry

The Mayor of Casterbridge 88%

He sells his wife at a country fair. Years later, as mayor, his past resurfaces.

by Thomas Hardy 1886

3.87

67k+ ratings

🎭 Victorian Tragedy 🔄 Rise And Fall 😳 Public Shame 🤫 Family Secrets 💼 Business Rivalry

Winter's Tale

by Mark Helprin • 1983

A magical white horse rescues a thief, then fate places a dying heiress in his path.

3.51

30k+

🏛️ Mythic Fantasy 💔 Doomed Lovers ❄️ Wintry Atmosphere 🏙️ Gilded Age New York 🐴 Magical Animal Companion

Winter's Tale 88%

A magical white horse rescues a thief, then fate places a dying heiress in his path.

by Mark Helprin 1983

3.51

30k+ ratings

🏛️ Mythic Fantasy 💔 Doomed Lovers ❄️ Wintry Atmosphere 🏙️ Gilded Age New York 🐴 Magical Animal Companion

So Long, See You Tomorrow

by William Maxwell • 1980

An old man revisits a 1920s murder, aching for the boy he failed to face.

3.85

18k+

🏚️ Midwestern Gothic 🔪 Literary Crime 👦 Lost Friendship 📰 Small-Town Scandal 😔 Lifelong Regret

So Long, See You Tomorrow 88%

An old man revisits a 1920s murder, aching for the boy he failed to face.

by William Maxwell 1980

3.85

18k+ ratings

🏚️ Midwestern Gothic 🔪 Literary Crime 👦 Lost Friendship 📰 Small-Town Scandal 😔 Lifelong Regret

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