In this volume we share Charlotte Bronte's experience for four crucial years. The success of
Jane Eyre and the strange power of Wuthering Heights made the'brothers Bell'the'universal
theme of conversation'; but privately the family endured the deaths of Branwell Bronte in
September and Emily in December 1848, followed by Anne's in May 1849. Haunted by the
fear that she also would succumb, Charlotte found salvation in writing Shirley, published in
October 1849, and comfort in her friendship and correspondence with Ellen Nussey, with her …

In this volume we share Charlotte Brontë's experience for four crucial years. The success of
Jane Eyre and the strange power of Wuthering Heights made the'brothers Bell'the'universal
theme of conversation'; but privately the family endured the deaths of Branwell Brontë in
September and Emily in December 1848, followed by Anne's in May 1849. Haunted by the
fear that she also would succumb, Charlotte found salvation in writing Shirley, published in
October 1849, and comfort in her friendship and correspondence with Ellen Nussey, with her …

This final volume of Charlotte Brontë's letters covers the period from 1852, when she
eventually completed Villette, to March 1855, when she died at the early age of 38.
Published in January 1853, Villette reflects experiences and moods conveyed with sharp
immediacy in the correspondence of the preceding years. In December 1852 one of her
most dramatic letters described the crucial event in her private life: Arthur Nicholls's proposal
of marriage, when,'shaking from head to foot'he made her feel'what it costs a man to declare …