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Mrs. Henry Wood
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East Lynne Kindle Edition

by Mrs. Henry Wood (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 510 ratings
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A married aristocratic woman succumbs to desire in this nineteenth-century English novel.
 
Lady Isabel Vane married for all the wrong reasons—only to one day find her lawyer husband neglecting her for another woman. Seething with jealousy, she leaves behind her husband and their child for the flirtatious Francis Levison. It’s a risk she takes willingly, but it comes with a heavy price that will lead her to the depths of despair and a quest for redemption.
 
A classic page-turner from the “sensation novel” trend in England, East Lynne plays upon the Victorian fears of infidelity, promiscuity, and divorce. A tale of disaster, disguise, and adultery, it continues to surprise readers today.
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  1. Print length
    355 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Open Road Media
  5. Publication date
    June 6, 2017
  6. File size
    3363 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“This is a splendid edition. Its introduction is an authoritative and up to date guide to the novel and its context. A generous and judicious selection of contemporary reviews of East Lynne and the sensation novel further amplify the context, and provide an excellent resource for students.” ― Lyn Pykett, University of Wales-Aberystwyth

“In his introduction, Andrew Maunder suggests that East Lynne may be ‘one of the most famous unread works in the English language.’ This immensely readable and teachable edition should help to preserve its fame while increasing its readership. Maunder locates the novel in its various contexts―social, historical, and literary―focusing especially on the material conditions of the novel’s publication, and the various “woman questions” of the middle nineteenth century. The supplemental materials are thorough and well-chosen, and for the selections from T. A. Palmer’s theatrical adaptation alone, the Broadview edition would be my choice for teaching.” ― Elisabeth Rose Gruner, University of Richmond

From the Publisher

The Broadview Literary Texts series is an effort to represent the ever-changing canon of literature in English by bringing together texts long regarded as classics with valuable, though lesser-known literature.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0714CR7KZ
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media (June 6, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 6, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3363 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 355 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 510 ratings

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Mrs. Henry Wood

Mrs. Henry Wood

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
510 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Eddie Lew
5.0 out of 5 stars The Tragedy Of Striving to Live Life Not As It Is but As An Idealized Reality.
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2017
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I give East Lynne five stars not because it is a perfect book; Mrs. Henry Wood's novel is far-fetched, yes, but I must say, I couldn't put it down and read it in three days. This ultimately engrossing story (the reason for the five stars), accurately depicts Victorian thinking. So much was swept under the rug and relationships between people was based not on reality, but on what was perceived to be an idealized reality. If only honesty prevailed....

Lady Isabel's and Archibald Carlyle's plight of being slaves to propriety is a compelling story, which I urge people interested in Victorian novels to read. It's long, overwritten - remember, it was a time with no television or radio so reading was an important escape - but it will have your heart racing to find out how it ends, as it did mine. Everyone and there are many characters, are very real and vulnerable to human nature and the villain is truly sociopathic, a trait that is not exclusive to our post-Freudian times.

In Archibald Carlyle, you have a "perfect" man, really, but even he succumbs to societal pressures and at times avoids reality. Victorian strictures were too much for this truly admirable man to transcend. In addition, his sister, Cornelia, is a true gem of a character - and very funny.

Another lady author, Elizabeth Gaskell, is a novelist I urge you to investigate. She and Mrs. Henry Wood are not on the level of Charles Dickens, a towering genius, but, in my opinion, just beneath him in stature and ability to accurately see human nature battling society's dictated norms.
7 people found this helpful
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Kani
4.0 out of 5 stars Nice companion for Audible narration
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2022
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The Audible version was narrated well and it’s helpful to sync with this kindle version. But - One star off for incorrect author name! Henry Wood did not write this—his wife did. Fascinating Victorian novel that got adapted into multiple plays and films.
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Ricardo Jasso Moedano
5.0 out of 5 stars can you forgive her?
Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2016
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What a painful book! And yet, precisely on account of Lady Isabel's piercing agony, brought about by a paroxysm of jealousy, I now dote on Ellen (Mrs. Henry) Wood. Rare indeed are the volumes that produce emotions as potent as "East Lynne". Sorry, Hardy, but when it comes to harrowing tales, this woman has unseated you with a single shove, since a sole act of rashness supplied enough ground for fresh suffering to many characters for years ahead.

While Isabel wore sackcloth and ashes ever since she consented to be 'abducted' from her husband Mr. Carlyle and their children, Levison the wily rake that goaded her to such ignominy later on cast her aside as though a filthy old rag, according to his custom. And yes, he thrived afterwards! He became a Baron and even contested against Mr. Carlyle for a seat in parliament (amid which campaign, however, his dignity was outraged by a 'ducking' in the river at the hands of the people who supported his rival). Towards the end of the book Levison gets his due at the assizes, of course; albeit not for Isabel's downfall, but for a crime he had ascribed to another chap over ten years previous, during which interval this chap, Richard Hare, had managed to remain a fugitive, proclaiming his innocence in spite of the strong evidence against him. Strong yet false, as we suspect from the beginning because of the dreams and premonitions of his mother.

Several treacheries are carried out along the story, and there are some twists also, yet none actually give us the readers a big surprise, for every event follows a logical course. Nay, we are privy to the most hazardous deceit of all: Isabel, believed to have died in a train wreck abroad, returns under the guise of a queerly-attired French widow (thus diverting the remotest hints of recognition)… Isabel returns to her former home, East Lynne, in the capacity of governess to her own children, as well as to those of Mr. Carlyle and her second wife, Richard’s sister Barbara (whom Isabel had wrongly assumed, at the instance of Levison, to be her husband's mistress). Albeit reunited with her children, Isabel must conceal her identity at any cost, even that of restraining her primal instincts when her little boy falls ill and passes away, besides enduring the other servants' remembrances of her true person lash her conscience continually (they could never understand Isabel's leaping into a pit of shame on leaving Mr. Carlyle). Poor Isabel! Still, Mr. Carlyle's stubborn and domineering sister Cornelia repented her cruel treatment of her back in the early days of her marriage and, bearing Isabel no malice once she’s found out, granted her pardon, as did Mr. Carlyle himself just before Isabel’s woes ended with her life (her expiation complete by now).

It is my conjecture that Lady Glencora Palliser had heard of Isabel Vane’s drama—well, rather, that Anthony Trollope had read Ellen Wood’s novel, since Glencora brooded over giving up her husband and running off with another fellow in "Can You Forgive Her?". Furthermore, Plantagenet, like Archibald Carlyle, proved a considerate, upright and dutiful spouse. Be it as it may, Ellen Wood erected herself a sturdy monument out of the bulk of sensations her novel gives rise to.
14 people found this helpful
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Mark Levitt
3.0 out of 5 stars Sensationalist story marred by oblivious protagonist and fatalistic plot
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2016
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Story reminded me of a lesser Wilkie Collins tale without the indelible/resourceful characters. The cuckholded husband would have to rank as the most unobservant characters in all of literature. First oblivious to his wife's unfounded jealousy then thickly unaware that the woman, suspected dead, worked/lived with him and his second wife for over 6 months before he recognized her as the same woman. Story goes on too long toward the end and the characters are too compliant to their fates to make for a more compelling ending but story has enough scandalous turns to make for a decent read.
6 people found this helpful
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SD
5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting!
Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2023
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I had never heard of this author or book & was absolutely riveted to finishing it as quickly as possible. Highly recommended for people who enjoy Trollope, Oliphant, Hardy & Gaskell!
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Anne Marie Vella
4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book, which you cannot put down
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2015
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This story is one we often encounter in today's world: jealousy and temptation make us do things which we later regret. An excellent book, which you cannot put down!
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Sara
5.0 out of 5 stars Great plot and great edition
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2019
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This edition was great! The appendices at the end provided immense historical context. The binding is strong and it survived traveling with me in my back back for awhile.
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Eugene N. Kilmer
1.0 out of 5 stars Unreadable
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2024
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I find that all those hard cover books printed as Scholar Select books are scanned by someone who did not know how to scan a book and didn't make the slightest attempt to get a readable copy. I kick myself every time I get stung by a book privately published by someone scouring the internet for books in the public domain and then selling them on Amazon. They are almost always unreadable crap. Always, ALWAYS, check to see that a book you are considering purchasing is actually published by a real publishing house, not Joe who is trying to make a few dollars by privately publishing a public domain book using Amazon's publish-on-demand web site.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Consumer plus one
5.0 out of 5 stars It’s a book ??
Reviewed in Australia on August 18, 2023
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What can go wrong. It’s a book. Looks like the pic, the story is good and when I’ve read it , it will prop up the breakfast table leg…. Hahahha. Books are awesome.
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Miriam
5.0 out of 5 stars Mi è piaciuto molto, anche perché si svolge in un'altra epoca.
Reviewed in Italy on August 3, 2017
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Mi è piaciuto molto, tanto che avrei voluto leggere anche glia altri romanzi della scrittrice, disponibili nel formato Kindle/Amazon UK, ma non accessibili ai clienti italiani, e purtroppo,,non presenti nel catalogo Amazon Italia. Vorrei, anzi, chiederne il motivo.
2 people found this helpful
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B. Pocker
5.0 out of 5 stars Buy it, read it and learn!
Reviewed in Canada on September 1, 2012
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Even if you do not have the slightest interest in romance fiction, buy this book for the lengthy and remarkable introduction. I learned more about cultural history and its connection to popular fiction than I would have thought possible. The introduction made me understand why a number of famous novels [i.e. Madame Bovary, Anna Karenina and East Lynne all have similar plot lines, namely, a well-married woman leaves her husband for another man, who is generally described as 'unreliable'. It never occurred to me that cultural anxieties about changes in divorce laws [in the 19th century] would result in the public's favoring this kind of fiction. The introduction discusses why the laws changed and a bit about the public's response to it in England. For me, the fact that this theme was being addressed in different countries at about the same time is more intriguing. There was an Academy Award nominated film based on this book. To the best of my knowledge, it has either been lost or is not available on DVD. It was made in the early 1930s.Anyway...it's worth reading.
3 people found this helpful
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M. J. Saxton
5.0 out of 5 stars Getting Involved
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 22, 2009
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If you're going to read Victorian Literature, you might as well start with this one. It's a good read and, despite its 624 pages, remarkably easy to get through.

It has all the right ingredients for any reader who enjoys a modern family saga: complex emotional relationships, disguises and secret meetings, an unsolved murder. Was Ellen Wood the Jackie Collins of her day? I would say so.

There are the moralistic bits of Victorian Christian thought, but they help to create a clear idea of how people thought then and are not as oppressive as might be expected. The theme of redemption underpins the emotional response to events in the novel. Mrs Wood creates a balanced view and, in some senses, chats to the reader rather than preaching.

Lady Isabel is a great central character, if a bit mawkish at time; following her story is very engaging. Afy Hallijohn is one of those wonderful comic and crafty creations who comes into her own in the third part of the book.

Scenery and description form a good part of the narrative and conjure up rural England and its people with a nice vividness.

There are familiar techniques of suspense which are as familiar from modern soap opera as nineteenth century melodrama. The book isn't anywhere near as sentimental as the play and it doesn't contain the lines, "Dead, dead and never called me mother!" (I thought that was a bit of a shame, but then the play only contains words approximately similar).

I heartily recommend getting into this one.
9 people found this helpful
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Jassu79
4.0 out of 5 stars Ein Sittengemälde der Spätviktorianik
Reviewed in Germany on October 1, 2007
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"East Lynne" zeichnet ein getreues Bild der Moral des englischen Bürgertums in der zweiten Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts. Obgleich der Roman von seinen Zeitgenossen zunächst als zutiefst unmoralisch und skandalös angeprangert wurde, ist er doch rigoros in der bürgerlichen Ideologie verankert, und scheut auch nicht davor zurück, diese Ansichten durch den Erzähler mit äußerster Inbrunst zum besten zu geben.
Dementsprechend wurde der Roman schon bald zur Pflichtlektüre junger Frauen, die damit auf die "richtige" Weltsicht eingestimmt werden sollten.
Mit Isabel Vane, der (Anti-)Heldin des Romans, wurde jedoch eine Figur geschaffen, die sich trotz der Verurteilung durch den Erzähler als Sympathieträgerin behaupten kann und so eine gewisse Ambivalenz schafft. Ob nun jedoch subversiv oder zutiefst konservativ: "East Lynne" ist ein Stück Zeitgeschichte, und nebenbei auch noch ein kurzweiliger Roman, der sich hervorragend lesen lässt.
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