Vashti

Under an apple tree at Grassmere, sixteen-year-old Salome Owen waits uneasily for the return of the household's master. Ulpian Grey arrives to find a proud miller's daughter who resents the authority his homecoming may bring. His sister Jane has adopted Salome, and that family connection gives their prickly first conversation a weight beyond ordinary introductions. Augusta J. Evans builds this American novel around dependence, pride and the difficult business of judging another person's character.

Salome's rejection of unwanted attention from Mr. Granville earns Dr. Grey's respect for her firmness. Domestic exchanges give way to a nighttime summons for the doctor, bringing his medical duties into the household story. Rich descriptions of gardens and faces sit beside classical references, quoted verse and Christian reflection. Readers interested in nineteenth-century fiction can find here a closely observed struggle between strong feeling, personal dignity and moral responsibility.