02801cam a22003133u 4500 76502 UtSlPG 20260610134754.0 m cr n 260607r20251870utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d UtSlPG en iso639-1 PR Braddon, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth), 1835-1915 The lady's mile Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg, 2025 1 online resource : multiple file formats text txt rdacontent computer c rdamedia online resource cr rdacarrier Release date is 2025-07-14 Peter Becker, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) "The lady's mile : a novel by M. E. Braddon" is a novel written in the mid-19th century. It is a society romance that pits love and artistic ambition against money and status, following struggling painter Philip Foley and his mercurial enchantress Florence Crawford alongside proud, impoverished Lady Cecil Chudleigh and the magnetic soldier Hector Gordon. Moving between fashionable London and a quiet Hampshire coast, it promises class tension, temptation, and tangled affections. The opening of the novel paints the glitter and envy of London’s Lady’s Mile, where young artist Philip Foley broods over his infatuation with the celebrated painter William Crawford’s coquettish daughter, Florence, while swapping cynical talk with his novelist friend Sigismund Smythe. We learn Philip’s history—his talent, hard apprenticeship, and precarious living—alongside Florence’s charm and worldliness. The scene then shifts to Lady Cecil, a dignified but destitute earl’s daughter serving as companion to her sharp-tongued aunt, Mrs. MacClaverhouse, whose life revolves around careful economies and social calculation. A restorative seaside stay at Fortinbras brings Cecil unexpected brightness: the return of her aunt’s adored nephew, Captain Hector Gordon, a generous, accomplished officer who instantly wins Cecil’s esteem. Their easy companionship grows through readings, drives, and picnics, while the aunt quietly schemes for a match and finally confronts Cecil, who denies any engagement or promise. The section closes with this tension unresolved, as an outing is about to begin and feelings remain unspoken. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Originally published: London: John and Robert Maxwell, 1870 English fiction -- 19th century https://archive.org/details/ladysmilenovel00braduoft https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/76502 117227 117227