Tempest and Sunshine

... I was enthralled by "Tempest and Sunshine." Never in a classic novel have I wanted a character to get their comeuppance so badly. In your average classic drama there is very little drama, the bad guys just aren't that bad. Tempest, aka Julia, really is though. She is devious, unrepentant, and knows no bounds- she is even willing to sacrifice her own sister. I loved actively despising her character, and that's when you know it's a good creation. Fanny just makes you smile, even when you should be frustrated with her continual easy nature. You want her to wake up, but if she did, then she wouldn't be the good person she is. ...( Becky)

About the author

Mary Jane Holmes (April 5, 1825 - October 6, 1907) was an American author who published 39 novels, as well as short stories. Her first novel sold 250,000 copies; and she had total sales of 2 million books in her lifetime, second only to Harriet Beecher Stowe. Her books included: "Tempest and Sunshine" (1854), "English Orphans" (1855), "Homestead on the Hillside" (1855), "Lena Rivers" (1856), "Meadow Brook" (1857), "Dora Deane" (1858), "Cousin Maude" (1860), "Marian Gray" 186^, "Hugh Worthington" (1864), "Cameron Vide" (1867). "Rose Mather" (1868), "Ethelyn's Mistake" (1869), "Edna Browning" (1872), "Mildred" (1877), "Forest House" (1879), "Daisy Thornton," "Queenie Hetherton" (1883), "Christmas Stories" (1884), "Bessie's Fortune" (1885). "Gretchen" (1887), "Marguerite" (1891).

Portraying domestic life in small-town and rural settings, she examined gender relationships, as well as those of class and race. She also dealt with slavery and the American Civil War with a strong sense of moral justice. Since the late 20th century, she has received fresh recognition and reappraisal, although her popular work was excluded from most 19th-century literary histories.

... Holmes died in 1907, at the age of 82, in Brockport. Her obituary was published a few days later in the Nation, reflecting her stature. Long excluded from literary histories of the nineteenth century written by men, the author was reappraised by scholars in the late 20th and early 21st century, who recognized her achievements and the value of her work. (wikipedia.org)