📖 About This Book · Ovington's Bank - by Stanley J. Weyman
First published in London in 1922 by John Murray
Setting: Aldersbury, 1825 – the speculative mania before the financial panic.
Key Themes: class and social mobility · financial speculation · integrity vs. ambition · love and sacrifice.
Major Characters: Arthur Bourdillon (ambitious, charming) · Clement Ovington (honest, nature-loving) · Josina Griffin (the Squire's daughter) · Squire Griffin (proud, blind) · Charles Ovington (self-made banker) · Rodd (loyal cashier).
Plot Arc: The novel follows the rise and fall of a speculative bank, interwoven with a romantic plot. Arthur's ambition leads him to fraud; Clement's honesty redeems him; the Squire's pride is humbled; love triumphs over prejudice.
Ovington's Bank - by Stanley J. Weyman - Book Summary
Summary
- Set against the backdrop of the 1825 financial panic, Ovington's Bank tells the story of ambition, love, and moral integrity in a small English county town.
- Aldersbury is the "old county town of Aldshire" – and "Aldshire" is a fictional county based on Shropshire. The real places and references in the novel, such as Garthmyl (based on a real village in Powys) and the general landscape, are rooted in the author's own experience. The "Garth" estate in the novel is based on a real house called Garthgynan in Denbighshire.
- Self-made banker Charles Ovington has built his bank from nothing—but his success is threatened when the speculative bubble bursts.
- His ambitious partner, Arthur Bourdillon, a charming but morally compromised gentleman, commits several misdeeds to further the bank's and his own interests.
- Meanwhile, Arthur's cousin Josina Griffin, timid heiress to the Garth estate, has fallen in love with Ovington's son Clement—a gentle, nature-loving man who despises banking. Their secret romance is opposed by Josina's proud, blind father, the Squire, who sees the Ovingtons as vulgar upstarts.
- Clement is instrumental in correcting the outcome of Arthur's wilful actions while there is a devastating run on his father's bank.
- The Squire, learning the truth about Arthur's betrayal and Clement's heroism, is forced to choose between his pride and his daughter's happiness.
- A tale of integrity versus ambition, love versus prejudice, Ovington's Bank explores the human cost of financial speculation—and the redemption that comes from choosing honour over gain.
- You can find the free epub version here
No comments:
Post a Comment