Set in a woolen mill town in Yorkshire during the Napoleonic Wars, Shirley is the story of the beautiful heiress, Shirley Keeldar, her close friend, Caroline Helstone, impoverished mill owner Robert Moore, and his brother, Louis, who is tutor to Shirley's relatives, the Sympsons, and who is her former tutor as well.

In some ways, I was reminded of North and South by Brontë's friend Elizabeth Gaskell; especially in regards to the background of labor unrest in a woolen mill town. However, Brontë writes with much more passion and depth - the same emotions barely held in check that charactarize Jane Eyre. That is where the comparison to Jane Eyre ends, though, or at least nearly so. Shirley is almost nothing like Brontë's more famous work.

Jane Eyre is a lifelong favorite of mine, and always will be, but I find shirley more mature, and actually the stronger, better work.

I loved Shirley! It was a bit slow to start, but before I knew it, I found myself completely absorbed in the characters' lives. So much so, that I actually gasped out loud at one part that turned out to be minor.

I'll be adding Shirley to my ever-growing list of favorites. What a great way to see out the old year!