Marcella, young and with a new-womanly independence, has a yearning to help the poor. When a gamekeeper is murdered near where she lives, Marcella finds herself at odds with her wealthy fiance over beliefs about property and justice. The discovery leads Marcella to pursue-among other things-a career in nursing. In settings ranging from village cottages, London slums and hospital wards to fashionable drawing rooms and the Ladies' Gallery of the Houses of Parliament, the book combines a gripping story with serious issues-socialism, rural and urban poverty, poaching laws, journalistic ethics, the Woman Question-inspiring critics to liken Marcella to George Eliot's novels.

The Broadview Literary Texts edition records the substantive differences between the two major editions published during Ward's lifetime, and included among the many appendices are news accounts of the murder trial and executions that inspired the novel, and previously unpublished letters by Ward.

NB: Mary Augusta Ward has traditionally been known as Mrs. Humphry Ward.