A lovely book. Shades of Thomas Hardy, this tale is set in the lost rural world of the early 19th Century. George Eliot captures the atmosphere beautifully and creates timeless characters you really care about. This is a short novel (barely 180 pages) but it is packed with incident and detail. You'll be hooked before the first chapter is over and remain lost in this wonderfully realised story until the end.

I have read many types of books on many subjects but I must admit that this compelling story by George Eliot stands alone, it is a story of love, lust, loss and greed and above all new beginnings, Silas Marner is a weaver in the town of raveloe, a lonely, mysterious figure who is eyed with suspicion, he is prone to fits and blackouts, possibly epilepsy, the townsfolk are simple men and women and so believe he is a practitioner of the black arts, silas is a goodly fellow who is part of a brotherhood until he is framed for theft and driven out of the town, silas starts life anew, seeking solace in hard work, solitude and his increasing hoard of gold, When he is robbed of his entire savings by the wayward son of the local squire, it seems he has lost everything for the second tiime, then one day, upon arriving home he discovers a foundling child asleep on the hearth, could this child be the redemption that Silas has been looking for, or is he risking even more loss and heartbreak, This is a passionate and heartrending story of a man betrayed and crushed but given hope when he least expects it, A classic tale of tragedy,intrigue and human tenderness, Brilliant, Brilliant, Brilliant