The Lovels of Arden

"The Lovels of Arden" by M. E. Braddon is a story set in Victorian England about a young English woman named Clarissa Lovel who returns home after many years abroad to confront a changed reality and an uncertain future; she finds her family estate, Arden Court, has been sold due to misfortune, causing her to grapple with feelings of neglect and a longing for her family's past, while seeking love and acceptance amid the constricting expectations of society, which begins with arriving in London, anticipating the warmth of her father's embrace, only to be met with the harsh realities of her family's reduced circumstances.