A Baker's Dozen of Victorian Novels

As promised I went through my shelves and made a list of books written in the Victorian period or set during it that I'd like to read from this winter.  I know I won't get to all the titles, but I hope to read some of them.  My list isn't quite as heavy duty as Victoria's, but they all sound appealing to me.  There are so many excellent books to choose from in this period it is hard to come up with a short list.

1. Miss Marjoribanks, Margaret Oliphant -- The Dovegreybooks group I belong to is going to read this as their next serial read.  They'll be starting in December.  Lucilla Marjoribanks is "a triumphant intermediary between Jane Austen's Emma and George Eliot's Dorothea"!
2. Lady Audley's Secret, Mary Elizabeth Braddon -- I am greatly looking forward to reading this.  This was a shocking book at the time.  Whenever I read a contemporary novel set in Victorian times the heroine (if she is on the spunky side) always seems to be discretely reading this book.  "Lady Audley's Secret subtly undermined the Victorian myth that female self-assertion was a form of insanity".
3. Uncle Silas, Sheridan Le Fanu -- This is on my list to buy.  I've heard this is a great sine-tingling Gothic read. 
4. Sylvia's Lovers, Elizabeth Gaskell -- This book has been on so many of my lists of books I am absolutely going to read, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.  This is probably not Gaskell's most famous book, or maybe eve the best place to start with her work, but I've been wanting to read it for so long.  "It is one of the most powerfully moving of all Gaskell's novels, described by its author as 'the saddest story I ever wrote'."
5. Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Anne Bronte -- I thought of rereading Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights, but I should really read one of the other Bronte's work as well.  This was another shock to society when it was published.  "Anne Bronte's heroine, Helen Huntingdon, having endured too many of the 'revolting scenes' deplored by contemporary reviewers, leaves her dissolute husband in order to earn her own living and rescue her son from his influence."
6. Far from the Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy -- I thought of reading Jude the Obscure, but I know it was his last work, and so poorly received that he stopped writing novels after it.  Maybe I should read one of his other works first?  This novel is "Hardy's passionate tale of beautiful, headstrong farmer Bathsheba Everdene and her three suitors".
7. Law and the Lady, Wilkie Collins -- I'm supposed to be reading Armadale...after I finish Dickens.  So many of Wilkie Collins's books sound good to me. 
8. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll -- I don't recollect ever having read the Alice stories properly.  I am sure I read some sort of children's book that was abridged, but never the actual complete story. 
9. Linnet Bird, Linda Holeman -- This is a contemporary book set in Victorian London and India.
10. Sweetest Thing, Fiona Shaw -- Another contemporary author.  The blurb reads: "A brilliant contemporary novel about late-Victorian life it gives us a world of morality, espionage and cocoa, where one man believed he could make his fortune from a mouthful of sugar and a pin-up girl."
11. Affinity, Sarah Waters -- Can this possibly be better than Fingersmith?  "A spellbinding ghost story, a complex and intriguing historical mystery, and a poignant romance with an unexpected twist."
12. French Lieutenant's Woman, John Fowles -- I'm very curious about this novel.  I've heard it is a wonderful Victorian pastiche, but also has a contemporary feel as the narrator inserts himself into the story.  Should be interesting.  "In a feat of seductive storytelling, John Fowles immerses us in the emotionally charged world of a Victorian love triangle and, through a startling act of literary invention, reveals the image of modern man reflected in the past."
13. The Great Stink, Clare Clark -- I liked Clark's recent novel, The Nature of Monsters.  This one sounds at least as good if not better.  It is "a novel of corruption and murder beneath the streets of Victorian London!"

I probably won't start reading from my list until next month, as I am trying hard to whittle down my piles still.  I am already itching to pick out a book and start it however.  I think I will keep the books in this stack and keep it somewhere handy rather than returning them to their original homes on my bookshelves.

Comments

[Lyn Baines]

You've got some treats in store there, Danielle. I'll be reading Miss Majoribanks with the dovegreys, but I've read all of the other Victorian novels (except Uncle Silas which I have so I may be inspired to read it with you if you get to it). Law & the Lady is wonderful, Collins is so good at writing strong women. The Tenant is so impressive. If Anne wasn't a Bronte and therefore compared to two of the greatest novelists ever, she would be lauded for this. Sylvia's Lovers is certainly sad but the atmosphere of old Whitby and the whaling trade is so well-done. Lady Audley is a page turner, and Madding Crowd is one of my favourite Hardys. Gabriel Oak is a noble hero. Of the modern novels, I've only read the French Lieutenant's Woman but it's brilliant. Set in two periods and with lots of authorial asides and bits of historical fact thrown in with the fiction. What a lovely time you're going to have.

[BooksPlease]

I'm echoing Lyn - Tenant of Wildfell Hall and the French Lieutenant's Woman are brilliant books -you could watch the film as well. As for the Alice books - they're very different from the others you've listed but very enjoyable - I'm on a Lewis Carroll phase at the moment as I've just finished reading a biography - I must reread Alice soon. I'm a Hardy fan and do like Jude the Obscure. The contemporary 'bad' reviews were because the novel was considered'coarsely indecent' and not all thought so, there was praise as well.

[Karen/Krakovianka]

Danielle, I've been on hiatus from blogs and blogging, but yours is one of the first I've come back to--I so enjoy reading your constant fascination with both books and lists.

I'm a confirmed reader of Victorian literature, and I haven't read a single book on your list. Clearly, I still have a way to go. I recently read Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell, listened to the audiobook Villette by Charlotte Bronte, and am currently wading through Pickwick Paper's by Charles Dickens.

I'm pretty sure I at least have The Tenant of Wildfell Hall on my shelves...

Happy reading!

[Litlove]

I've just finished The French Lieutenant's Woman and I adored it too. I'll be blogging on it in the week.

Wonderful list!

[Dorothy W.]

This list sounds wonderful! I'd like to read Anne Bronte sometime soon -- I've been meaning to for ages. And Lady Audley's Secret too. As for Thomas Hardy, probably starting with something besides Jude the Obscure is a good idea (what a terrible title, don't you think?). I love Jude the Obscure, but it's SUCH a downer.

[Sam]

I read Lady Audley's Secret a few years ago after reading about a character in another book reading it. I think it was one of the Betsy-Tacy books come to think of it (another series I mean to reread someday). The Gaskell and Oliphant books are two on my list to read. I also love Victorian lit and this seems the perfect time of year to read them.

[Chelsea]

What an inspiring list! I've often been just shy of fully jumping in to a Victorian read-a-thon, but more power to you! I've just finished Jude the Obscure, and if you have time, I really would try and fit it in. It's gotten poor reviews, but I couldn't put it down!

[Danielle]

Lyn--You are one of the most well read people that I know, and I know lots of well read people! :) I am looking forward to each and every one of these books! I'll let you know when I read Uncle Silas (I have a feeling that is one I will get to)!
BooksPlease--I'm glad not all the contemporary reviews (of Hardy's Jude the Obscure) were not horrible. It was so sad when I heard he gave up writing novels due to the slack he got. I think the Alice books will be fun--something different. And I am hoping the Fowles will not be too hard--why do I have this feeling he will be hard?
Karen--I was just wondering where you had disappeared to. I hope you'll be back to blogging, but breaks are good sometimes! I thought about choosing Villette, but The Tenant... just appealed to me more strongly at the moment. I am reading David Copperfield at the moment, and greatly enjouing it. I am a big list maker--I can't help myself. I don't always get to everything on my list, but if not the book will likely end up on another list later.
Litlove--So glad to hear you liked it. Good timing on reading it for me. I can't wait to read your post about it. I've had a copy for a very long time now, I really feel like reading it.
Dorothy--I do want to read Jude the Obscure eventually, but as he has so many other novels, I thought maybe something different would be a better one to choose. I have heard it is not a happy book, but I am sure it's good. Far from the Madding Crowd sounds more up my alley at the moment, though. I am looking forward to reading Ann Bronte, too. I wouldn't mind reading more about the Brontes in general as a matter of fact.
Sam--Victorian lit always sounds appealing, but this time of year seems like the perfect time to read a nice long Victorian saga! I have heard so much about the Braddon, I am tempted to start that one first. I should read those Betsy-Tacy books too--so many people mention them!
Chelsea--I do have the book and do want to read it. I wouldn't mind reading some of her earlier novels first though. I loved Tess of the D'Urbervilles earlier this year and I think I like his writing enough to imagine I will like most if not all his novels.

[Becca]

This is a remarkable list. I really must give up my job and get to reading around the clock. Honestly, I am so thankful to have other people's lists of Victorian novels, since I have recently discovered how very much I love them.

[Danielle]

Becca--I think I need to win the lottery to actually read all the books on my lists. But I fit in as many as I can between work and all the other daily chores that need to be done. I really enjoy Victorian Lit as well!

[iliana]

Love the list - some of those are definitely on my "one of these days" list :) I loved Affinity (haven't read Fingersmith but did read Tipping the Velvet). I think you'll enjoy that one a lot.

[Danielle]

Iliana--It does look very good. I'm looking forward to reading it--plus I have her other two books waiting for me after that as well.

[Melanie]

I read Miss Marjoribanks a year ago; I liked it. I love Far from the Madding Crowd - I'd say it is one of Hardy's 'happier' novels. Jude is an amazing book,but very dark. Enjoy your reading!

[tara]

I love your lists Danielle! Many of these are also on my shelves..the ones I'd like most to get to are Miss Marjoribanks and Lady Audley's Secret. Have you mentioned The Sweetest Thing before - I know I've written that one down - it looks to be a UK release.

[Danielle]

Melanie--I'm so glad to hear Far from the Madding Crowd is a happier novel. I loved Tess, but I thought maybe Jude would be too dark for me right now. I do plan on reading it, though.
Tara--I think I am going to start Lady Audley's Secret over the holidays. And the Oliphant is a December book, too, though it is a few chapters a week I believe, as I am reading it with a group. I might have mentioned the Fiona Shaw book. I managed to mooch it--I was so happy to get it, as it is a UK book.

[elaine]

I think Tenant of wildfell Hall is a terrific book and always feel that Anne Bronte was seriously underrated. BBC did an excellent dramatisation of it some ten years ago now and stuck to the story wonderfully well.

[Danielle]

Elaine--I am looking forward to reading this. You don't hear much about Anne, do you? Well, less so than Emily and Charlotte anyway. What a fascinating family. I will look for the BBC film of this as well.

[Sarah G]

Thank you so much for this list! I recently discovered a love for victorian & gothic novels, and now I have a bunch to add to my list! Thank you!

[Danielle]

Sarah--I hope you find some here that you might enjoy. I love Victorian and Gothic novels and highly recommend Wilkie Collins and Sarah Waters, if you've not already tried them!