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Shop nowA Laodicean
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Learn morePaula Power, the daughter of a wealthy railway magnate, inherits De Stancy Castle, an ancient castle in need of modernization. She commissions a young architect from London, George Somerset, to undertake the work. Somerset falls in love with Paula. But Paula, the Laodicean of the title, meaning a person who is lukewarm or halfhearted, is torn between George’s admiration and that of Captain De Stancy, whose old-world romanticism contrasts with Somerset’s forward-looking outlook.
Paula’s vacillation in her romantic life is also reflected in her views about religion, politics, and social progress, a dilemma faced by people in the Victorian era as industrialization was beginning to greatly change their lives. Paula will have to decide between the two men, however, or risk losing them both.
Thomas Hardy (1840–1928) was an English poet, dramatist, and novelist. He is best known for his novels, which featured the lives of the poor and working people of rural England. Several of his novels are considered masterpieces of tragedy.
Original from narrator:
Clive Chafer is a professional actor, director and producer, as well as theatre instructor. Originally from England, he has performed and directed at many theatres in the San Francisco area, where he makes his home, and elsewhere in the U.S. In 1993, he founded TheatreFIRST, Oakland's professional theatre company, where he served as artistic director until 2008. Educated at Leeds and Exeter Universities in the U.K., Clive is also a linguist and naming consultant. He loves to travel and take photographs of stunning sunsets in exotic places.
Reviews
“The changing of the old order in country manors and mansions may be slow or sudden, may have many issues romantic or otherwise.”
“As always, Hardy’s rich character study and stunning prose create a compelling atmosphere and a good read.”
“A Laodicean draws deeply on Hardy’s personal experience: his early life as an architect, his frustration in love, and his ambivalence about theology and the modern age.”
“Hardy’s life was not primarily one of action. He was by nature a scholar and a writer: it is what goes on in the mind that holds us, and Hardy’s was rich with stored impressions.”
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