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Heartsease
Were they to leave the country? This was still under consideration. The next fortnight made some difference in Theodora's wishes respecting Brogden Cottage. Violet becoming less timid, ventured to show that she took interest in poor people; and Theodora was pleased by finding her able to teach at school, and to remember the names of the children.
662 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1854
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84 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte Mary Yonge
736 books73 followersCharlotte Mary Yonge was an English novelist, known for her huge output, now mostly out of print.
She began writing in 1848, and published during her long life about 160 works, chiefly novels. Her first commercial success, The Heir of Redclyffe (1853), provided the funding to enable the schooner Southern Cross to be put into service on behalf of George Selwyn. Similar charitable works were done with the profits from later novels. Yonge was also a founder and editor for forty years of The Monthly Packet, a magazine (founded in 1851) with a varied readership, but targeted at British Anglican girls (in later years it was addressed to a somewhat wider readership).
Among the best known of her works are The Heir of Redclyffe, Heartsease, and The Daisy Chain. A Book of Golden Deeds is a collection of true stories of courage and self-sacrifice. She also wrote Cameos from English History, Life of John Coleridge Patteson: Missionary Bishop of the Melanesian Islands and Hannah More. Her History of Christian Names was described as "the first serious attempt at tackling the subject" and as the standard work on names in the preface to the first edition of Withycombe's The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 1944.
Her personal example and influence on her god-daughter, Alice Mary Coleridge, played a formative role in Coleridge's zeal for women's education and thus, indirectly, led to the foundation of Abbots Bromley School for Girls.
After her death, her friend, assistant and collaborator, Christabel Coleridge, published the biographical Charlotte Mary Yonge: her Life and Letters (1903).
-Wikipedia
The Charlotte Mary Yonge Fellowship, a website with lots of information.
See Charlotte's character page for books about her.
She began writing in 1848, and published during her long life about 160 works, chiefly novels. Her first commercial success, The Heir of Redclyffe (1853), provided the funding to enable the schooner Southern Cross to be put into service on behalf of George Selwyn. Similar charitable works were done with the profits from later novels. Yonge was also a founder and editor for forty years of The Monthly Packet, a magazine (founded in 1851) with a varied readership, but targeted at British Anglican girls (in later years it was addressed to a somewhat wider readership).
Among the best known of her works are The Heir of Redclyffe, Heartsease, and The Daisy Chain. A Book of Golden Deeds is a collection of true stories of courage and self-sacrifice. She also wrote Cameos from English History, Life of John Coleridge Patteson: Missionary Bishop of the Melanesian Islands and Hannah More. Her History of Christian Names was described as "the first serious attempt at tackling the subject" and as the standard work on names in the preface to the first edition of Withycombe's The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 1944.
Her personal example and influence on her god-daughter, Alice Mary Coleridge, played a formative role in Coleridge's zeal for women's education and thus, indirectly, led to the foundation of Abbots Bromley School for Girls.
After her death, her friend, assistant and collaborator, Christabel Coleridge, published the biographical Charlotte Mary Yonge: her Life and Letters (1903).
-Wikipedia
The Charlotte Mary Yonge Fellowship, a website with lots of information.
See Charlotte's character page for books about her.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
Want to read
October 14, 2025I'm a simple reader, I was told this was a reworking of Mansfield Park and I added to my list!
October 19, 2021
This is tied with The Heir of Redclyffe as a favorite Charlotte Mary Yonge now. I loved the long amount of time we got to spend with these characters and see their struggles and growth as characters. It did have a few didactic bits but I did myself the favor of skimming these. I loved how the ending few chapters tied up everything with a nice little bow.
January 31, 2021
If you can't stand Christian redemption or the glorification of self-denial maybe you don't want to spend any time with Charlotte M. Yonge. There's a lot of that. The n-word is also sprinkled in here in a way I haven't noticed in her other works so be aware that's going to happen.
Having read most of her work this is a minor one but it's pretty interesting in addressing:
--living with chronic and acute illness
--poorly considered marriages and how they can be redeemed
--awkward class dynamics created by marrying down
--differences in character: Yonge is always attentive to how people have their own paths based on personality and therefore very different struggles
--the appropriate role of influence in women's friendships
--disability (there's an intellectually disabled minor character and one who's deaf and mute)
If you want the full Yonge experience starting with The Clever Woman of the Family or The Daisy Chain would be preferable, but there's a lot to be interested in here culturally, plus some entertaining Bad Man Drama. She's a very thoughtful novelist, and her characters' dilemmas are always presented very fairly and legitimately, so you can see why they make the choices they do.
I have no idea who told the earlier reviewer that this was like Pride and Prejudice! That's a very weird idea. The plot trajectory is kicked off by an impetuous young man marrying a sixteen-year-old country girl, who gradually becomes a moral influence on everyone around her. Nothing could be less like Austen. I guess you could say Theodora, the sister-in-law, is motivated by pride and learns better but she's hardly Mr. Darcy.
Having read most of her work this is a minor one but it's pretty interesting in addressing:
--living with chronic and acute illness
--poorly considered marriages and how they can be redeemed
--awkward class dynamics created by marrying down
--differences in character: Yonge is always attentive to how people have their own paths based on personality and therefore very different struggles
--the appropriate role of influence in women's friendships
--disability (there's an intellectually disabled minor character and one who's deaf and mute)
If you want the full Yonge experience starting with The Clever Woman of the Family or The Daisy Chain would be preferable, but there's a lot to be interested in here culturally, plus some entertaining Bad Man Drama. She's a very thoughtful novelist, and her characters' dilemmas are always presented very fairly and legitimately, so you can see why they make the choices they do.
I have no idea who told the earlier reviewer that this was like Pride and Prejudice! That's a very weird idea. The plot trajectory is kicked off by an impetuous young man marrying a sixteen-year-old country girl, who gradually becomes a moral influence on everyone around her. Nothing could be less like Austen. I guess you could say Theodora, the sister-in-law, is motivated by pride and learns better but she's hardly Mr. Darcy.
December 28, 2008
Never enough domestic fiction, say I.
June 16, 2019
This is touted as a Pride and Prejudice retelling. And, yes, Theodora takes an unfounded and intense dislike to Arthur's new wife. But the writing never even comes close to Austen. And none of the characters ever become real or likable. Except for John Martindale. And Violet is milquetoast in comparison to Elizabeth Bennett. It was a favorite Victorian literary convention to have heroines who suffer from brain fever or who swoon at the slightest provocation. But I much prefer women made of stronger mettle. Theodora has all the strength that is lacking in Violet, but none of the heart. So even though Theodora learns to like her sister-in-law, her continued pride, jealousy, and foolish stubbornness make her thoroughly disagreeable and tiresome throughout the rest of the book. Her chastening and improvement come too late for the reader to even care.
The best thing about the book is that Christianity is gently woven into it without giving all the dumb, easy answers that are offered in modern Christian fiction. Unfortunately, the "n" word is occasionally used to signify servitude.
The best thing about the book is that Christianity is gently woven into it without giving all the dumb, easy answers that are offered in modern Christian fiction. Unfortunately, the "n" word is occasionally used to signify servitude.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 7, 2010
I just finished reading Heartsease by Charlotte M. Yonge. I had only heard this 19th century author referred to once in some book, and the reference spoke rather slightingly of her. I was surprised to find this book quite well-written and interesting. I looked it up on Amazon to see if it’s been reprinted (I read it online, which is hard on the eyes but easy on the pocketbook!). It has been reprinted, though according to Amazon you would pay a shocking price if you wanted to get it.
Anyway, there was only one review of the book. Part of it says, “For me the real heroine of the book, however, is Arthur's sister, Theodora, whose wilfulness, passion, and benevolence make her a far more interesting character than the cloyingly sweet, submissive, and tediously pious Violet…Many readers will find the heavy-handed religious tone of the book irritating. It is also littered with racist epithets.”
Ack. Why do people admire the stubborn and wilful characters who mess up royally and spend most of the book unhappy, rather than admiring the truly noble? Do they really think it’s more admirable to do take the easy road and do what you feel like doing (Theodora) than to stay true to your beliefs and be a good wife to a rather selfish husband, doing it with cheerfulness and humility? Theodora is an interesting character, I’m not denying it, but I thought the book did an excellent job of showing why you should not be proud and selfish and that you should avoid being like her (until the end, of course, when she repents). I do know why the average modern reader will like Theodora best: it’s out of fashion to be unselfish and humble and sweet—if you’re a woman.
About the rest...well, yes, if one isn't a Christian I suppose one might think it was too religious. That’s a hazard one faces in reading old books. As a Christian I wish it were more religious. And racist epithets? Well, not many. Certainly no more than any other book of the time that mentions foreign places. Wives and Daughters is much worse in that regard.
So for Christian women who want to read a good old (long) book with a good role model, Heartsease would be a good pick.
Anyway, there was only one review of the book. Part of it says, “For me the real heroine of the book, however, is Arthur's sister, Theodora, whose wilfulness, passion, and benevolence make her a far more interesting character than the cloyingly sweet, submissive, and tediously pious Violet…Many readers will find the heavy-handed religious tone of the book irritating. It is also littered with racist epithets.”
Ack. Why do people admire the stubborn and wilful characters who mess up royally and spend most of the book unhappy, rather than admiring the truly noble? Do they really think it’s more admirable to do take the easy road and do what you feel like doing (Theodora) than to stay true to your beliefs and be a good wife to a rather selfish husband, doing it with cheerfulness and humility? Theodora is an interesting character, I’m not denying it, but I thought the book did an excellent job of showing why you should not be proud and selfish and that you should avoid being like her (until the end, of course, when she repents). I do know why the average modern reader will like Theodora best: it’s out of fashion to be unselfish and humble and sweet—if you’re a woman.
About the rest...well, yes, if one isn't a Christian I suppose one might think it was too religious. That’s a hazard one faces in reading old books. As a Christian I wish it were more religious. And racist epithets? Well, not many. Certainly no more than any other book of the time that mentions foreign places. Wives and Daughters is much worse in that regard.
So for Christian women who want to read a good old (long) book with a good role model, Heartsease would be a good pick.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 11, 2022
read fo BA thesis
well… I wouldn’t have made it though this if I wasn’t reading it for a specific purpose. It was extremely slow and tedious to read at times, i found myself repeating things for my chapter summaries several times in a row bc neither the plot nor the characters would move forward or develop much. it’s an outdated work for sure and it didn’t have many redeeming qualities for me expect it being very relevant to my thesis topic. Theodora was honestly pretty great though, the ending was extremely underwhelming but she had the most dynamic character arc at least. Violet and Theodora’s relationship was great too, i enjoyed seeing it develop.
well… I wouldn’t have made it though this if I wasn’t reading it for a specific purpose. It was extremely slow and tedious to read at times, i found myself repeating things for my chapter summaries several times in a row bc neither the plot nor the characters would move forward or develop much. it’s an outdated work for sure and it didn’t have many redeeming qualities for me expect it being very relevant to my thesis topic. Theodora was honestly pretty great though, the ending was extremely underwhelming but she had the most dynamic character arc at least. Violet and Theodora’s relationship was great too, i enjoyed seeing it develop.
November 26, 2019
I read one of Yonge's other books, Countess Kate, which was delightful. This, unfortunately, was not. It's far too long and much too prosy about religion. That said, it's interesting as a specimen of middle-class Victorian literature, complete with melodrama (two catastrophes and three near-death scenes!). The first half is slow going, but it picks up thereafter. If you haven't read Yonge, I don't think this is a good place to start. Read Countess Kate instead.
February 21, 2024
Such a sweet read. The main character Violet is such a gentle and humble woman. I love to read about how characters like her face being disliked.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews