Daniel Deronda

No one has a bigger heart than the mysterious Daniel Deronda. And in Gwendolen, he sees a lost soul in need of his help.

George Eliot’s final novel traces these two characters’ very different paths across 19th century London. While Daniel becomes immersed in the city’s Jewish population, Gwendolen is forced to marry a man she doesn’t love. But after their eyes meet across a roulette table, this pair’s fates become inextricably linked. Through their relationship, Eliot nimbly tackles issues of autonomy and identity.

A love story with a lot on its mind, "Daniel Deronda" stands as one of George Eliot’s true masterpieces. It’s been adapted for the screen several times, including a BBC television series starring Hugh Dancy.

George Eliot, pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans (1819–1890), was an English novelist, journalist and poet. She took a realist approach to storytelling, finding the drama and beauty in the day-to-day existence of England’s rural working classes. Her most famous novels include "Middlemarch", "The Mill on the Floss" and "Adam Bede".

Eliot’s personal life was the subject of some controversy. For over two decades, she lived together with George Henry Lewes, a married man—he was estranged from his wife but never officially divorced. Their relationship offended Victorian sensibilities, but failed to dent Eliot’s popularity with readers. The pair are buried side-by-side in London’s Highgate Cemetery.