Tess of the d'Urbervilles

A poor peddler, John Durbeyfield learns he is related to an ancient noble family: the d’Urbervilles. To gain part of the fortune, he sends his eldest daughter, Tess, to the d’Urberville mansion. But the relationship is not as it seems, and she ends up working as a servant. The wealthy family’s son, Alec d’Urberville, tries to seduce Tess and eventually rapes her. Left pregnant, Tess returns home to have the baby, but the baby dies. Later, Tess falls in love with a man named Angel. She keeps the painful secret until their wedding night, when she reveals the horror in her past. Will Angel stay with her? This unabridged version of Thomas Hardy’s important novel challenges the Victorian notions of female purity and double standards. It was first published in 1891 in the UK.