The Tenant of Wildfell Hall – Anne Brontë

"I am satisfied that if a book is a good one, it is so whatever the sex of the author."

A mysterious young widow, Helen Graham, arrives at the dilapidated Wildfell Hall with her young son, sparking gossip in the village. Gilbert Markham, a local farmer, falls in love with her but is baffled by her secrecy. Through her diary, he discovers the shocking truth: she has fled an abusive marriage to an alcoholic and dissolute husband to save her son.

Anne Brontë's novel was shocking in its time for its brutal depiction of marital abuse and alcoholism. Often called the first feminist novel, it asserts a woman's right to leave a toxic marriage and protect her children.