Effi Briest marries Baron Geert von Innstetten, a man twice her age and her mother's old suitor, at seventeen. She moves with him to the lonely town of Kessin on the Baltic, where she feels isolated and is troubled by the rumor of a ghost in the house. She later has a brief affair with a local officer, Major Crampas, and years later, Innstetten finds old letters that reveal it. Fontane shows how social codes, honor and conformity decide her fate.
A major German realist novel for readers who like a restrained story about marriage and society, in the vein of Madame Bovary and Anna Karenina, with a more reserved tone.
Deep, inward-looking, contemplative and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Wisdom Collector. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2016
- Publisher
- Andhof
- ISBN
- 9783736405295
- Language
- DE
