St. Martin's Eve / A Novel

St. Martin's Eve is a novel by Ellen Wood, first published in 1866. It takes its name from the festival of St. Martin's Day, held on November 11, the festivities for which in some countries commence on the previous evening; many of the critical events of the novel occur on this date over several years. The plot centres on the aftermath of George Carleton St. John's untimely death, after which his second wife Charlotte St. John (née Norris) is granted care of his two children—one by his first marriage (and the heir to Alnwick), the other by theirs—but severe doubts surround her appropriateness for the role. In France, the bachelor Frederick St. John seeks a reclusive existence in order to restore his finances; unexpectedly, he finds himself interposing in the engagement of Adeline de Castella to a French baron, with tragic consequences.