In this series, I recommend five classics each month that remind me of that particular time of the year. For the month of February, I thought I would highlight some of my favorite classic romance novels, most of them from the Victorian Era. What’s better than a little Jane Austin at this time of year? Maybe just a hot cup of tea and a fuzzy blanket to go along with it.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin
It would be remiss of me not to mention this classic romance novel during the month of Valentine’s Day. Not only is this novel romantic, but it is also witty, smart, and incredibly astute. Austen is a sharp writer, one who I think often doesn’t get as much credit as she deserves.
“Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.”
My review | Feminist Fridays: Pride and Prejudice (circa 1995 BBC)
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Although North and South certainly has a touch of romance in it, this classic novel also provides thought-provoking commentary on industrial towns in England during the mid-nineteenth century as well as the dynamics and disparities between mill workers and their employers.
“Loyalty and obedience to wisdom and justice are fine; but it is still finer to defy arbitrary power, unjustly and cruelly used–not on behalf of ourselves, but on behalf of others more helpless.”
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
If you’re looking for a wild, plot-twisty, unpredictable, passionate romance, then look no further than this classic novel. Bathsheba Everdene’s poor interesting decision-making skills will keep you on the edge of your seat the entire way through.
“It is difficult for a woman to define her feelings in language which is chiefly made by men to express theirs.”
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Clocking in at over 900 pages, this classic novel is a slow burn for sure! In my initial Goodreads review after reading this I wrote: “This book was like Pride and Prejudice on steroids (but better!).” I think that pretty much sums it up! Definitely an underrated classic.
“If we had a keen vision and feeling of all ordinary human life, it would be like hearing the grass grow and the squirrel’s heart beat, and we should die of that roar which lies on the other side of silence.”
My review | A Classic Couple: Middlemarch and White Teeth | A Classic Couple: Middlemarch and Nervous Conditions
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Although I Capture the Castle was published in 1948, it certainly has the feel of a Victorian romance novel. This book is bittersweet and heart-wrenching and heart-warming all at the same time! I would highly recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the other books I’ve mentioned in this post.
“I only want to write. And there’s no college for that except life.”
I hope you’ve enjoyed this classics guide for the month of February!
With books do you associate with the month of February? What do you think of the books I’ve mentioned? Which books would you add? Let me know in the comments section below!
Yours,
HOLLY
nut free nerd 
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