Miss Mackenzie

Miss Mackenzie is a work of literary fiction by British author Anthony Trollope, first published in 1865. ‘She thought, or rather hoped, that society might still open to her its portals,—not simply the society of the Handcocks from Somerset House, but that society of which she had read in novels during the day, and of which she had dreamed at night. Might it not yet be given to her to know clever people, nice people, bright people, people who were not heavy and fat like Mr Handcock, or sick and wearisome like her poor brother Walter, or vulgar and quarrelsome like her relatives in Gower Street?’ The story follows Margaret Mackenzie, a spinster in her mid-thirties which, by Victorian standards, is considered well over the hill. Her rather mundane life takes an unexpected turn when, with the death of her brother, for whom she has been caring, she inherits a small fortune. No longer a kept woman, she is suddenly free to enjoy life and travel the world, and that is precisely her intention. However, Margaret will quickly discover that her independence has limits. Several suitors are becoming quite attentive, but what exactly is the real focus of their interest? In Miss Mackenzie, Anthony Trollope has carefully combined empathy and satire, and invented a delightful female heroine.