200,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿 

Black Friday Sale on Now! Save up to 25% off Books, Toys, Board Games, & Puzzles! ✨

Wide Sargasso Sea

By Jean Rhys
Series: Penguin Essentials
0.0 (0 reviews)
3.59 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating. ( 104,321 ratings, 9,721 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys is a vivid and haunting prequel to Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. It explores the life of Antoinette Cosway, who becomes the enigmatic "madwoman in the attic," delving into themes of identity, colonialism, and madness. Set against the lush backdrop of the Caribbean, the novel reveals Antoinette's tumultuous journey from her Creole childhood in Jamaica to her ill-fated marriage, shedding light on her struggles and the impact of cultural dislocation.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2400
Elsewhere:
$2600
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are intrigued by prequels and the backstories of classic literature, as it offers a deeper exploration of a character from Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre. It combines rich, atmospheric prose with themes of identity, race, and colonial tension set against the lush and evocative backdrop of the Caribbean.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

If Antoinette Cosway, a spirited Creole heiress, could have foreseen the terrible future that awaited her, she would not have married the young Englishman. Initially drawn to her beauty and sensuality, he becomes increasingly frustrated by his inability to reach into her soul.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The spell-binding novel that was inspired by Jane Eyre

'There is no looking glass here and I don't know what I am like now... Now they have taken everything away. What am I doing in this place and who am I?'

If Antoinette Cosway, a spirited Creole heiress, could have foreseen the terrible future that awaited her, she would not have married the young Englishman. Initially drawn to her beauty and sensuality, he becomes increasingly frustrated by his inability to reach into her soul. He forces Antoinette to conform to his rigid Victorian ideals, unaware that in taking away her identity he is destroying a part of himself as well as pushing her towards madness.

Set against the lush backdrop of 1830s Jamaica, Jean Rhys's powerful, haunting masterpiece was inspired by her fascination with the first Mrs Rochester, the mad wife in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre.

Series: Penguin Essentials

View all
  • On Sale
    14% off
    1984
    1984 by George Orwell is a gripping tale set in a dystopian future where the world is embroiled in perpetual war, pervasive government surveillance, and incessant public manipulation. The story unfolds in Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, a province of the superstate Oceania. Here, the Party, led by the enigmatic and omniscient Big Brother, exerts absolute power over...
    By George Orwell
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Animal Farm
    A landmark in modern literature, Animal Farm by George Orwell is a timeless fable about the dangers of power and corruption. The story begins with Mr Jones, the negligent and frequently intoxicated owner of Manor Farm, who fails to care for his animals. Incited by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, the animals revolt, oust Mr Jones, and seize control of...
    By George Orwell
    Paperback
    $2599
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    21% off
    The Man in the High Castle
    New Penguin Essentials edition of Philip K. Dick's haunting vision of the world as it might have been. 'Truth, she thought. As terrible as death. But harder to find.' America, fifteen years after the end of the Second World War. The winning Axis powers have divided their spoils - the Nazis control New York, while California is ruled by the...
    By Philip K. Dick
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Submarine
    A funny, fresh coming-of-age story, now a Penguin Essential. Meet Oliver Tate, 15. Convinced that his father is depressed ("Depression comes in bouts. Like boxing. Dad is in the blue corner") and his mother is having an affair with her capoeira teacher, "a hippy-looking twonk", he embarks on a hilariously misguided campaign to bring the family back together. Meanwhile, he...
    By Joe Dunthorne
    Paperback
    $2300
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Hell's Angels
    We're the one percenters, man - the one percent that don't fit in and don't care. 'A phalanx of motorcycles came roaring over the hill from the west... the noise was like a landslide, or a wing of bombers passing over. Even knowing the Angels I couldn't quite handle what I was seeing. It was like Genghis Khan, Morgan's Raiders,...
    By Hunter S Thompson
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    14% off
    The Pursuit of Love
    The Pursuit of Love, Mitford's beloved novel, is published as a Penguin Essential for the first time. 'Obsessed with sex!' said Jassy, 'there's nobody so obsessed as you, Linda. Why if I so much as look at a picture you say I'm a pygmalionist.' In the end, we got far more information out of a book called Ducks and Duck...
    By Nancy Mitford
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2400
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Libra
    Libra by Don DeLillo, now available as a Penguin Essential, delves deep into the heart of America's most gripping historical moment—the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Set against the backdrop of Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 PM, the narrative captures the instant the nation was plunged into turmoil and psychosis. Shots ring...
    By Don DeLillo
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Forty Rules of Love
    A magical, cross-century tale of self-discovery from the Booker-shortlisted author of 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World - now a Penguin Essential. Ella Rubinstein has a husband, three teenage children, and a pleasant home. Everything that should make her confident and fulfilled. Yet, there is an emptiness at the heart of Ella's life - an emptiness once filled...
    By Elif Shafak
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Backorder
    Ships early December
  • The Bastard of Istanbul
    A breath-taking novel about a violent secret that threatens the peace of two interwoven families – now a Penguin Essential. One rainy afternoon in Istanbul a woman walks into a doctor's surgery. 'I want an abortion', she announces. She is nineteen years old, and unmarried. What happens that afternoon is to change her life, and the lives of everyone around...
    By Elif Shafak
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Chrysalids
    The Chrysalids, John Wyndham's classic science fiction novel, is published as an Essential for the first time. David Strorm's father disapproves of Angus Morton's unusually large horses, calling them blasphemies against nature. Little does he realise that his own son, his niece Rosalind, and their friends harbour their own secret aberration that would label them as mutants. As David and...
    By John Wyndham
    Paperback
    $2400
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • A Room with a View
    A delightfully satiric comedy of manners and an immensely satisfying love story. 'You love the boy body and soul, plainly, directly, as he loves you . . .' Lucy has her rigid, middle-class life mapped out for her until she visits Florence with her uptight cousin Charlotte, and finds her neatly ordered existence thrown off balance. Her eyes are opened...
    By E M Forster
    Paperback
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • In Cold Blood
    New edition of the Penguin Essential of the book that made Truman Capote's name. 'Dick became convinced that Perry was that rarity, "a natural killer" - absolutely sane, but conscienceless, and capable of dealing, with or without motive, the coldest-blooded deathblows.' On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, a wealthy farmer, his wife and their two...
    By Truman Capote
    Paperback
    $2300
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Wide Sargasso Sea is lauded for its compelling and exquisite narrative, described as a brilliant tale of dislocation and dispossession with an undertone of romantic cynicism. Jean Rhys masterfully transforms a menacing figure into a deeply human character, shedding light on issues of identity and the complex relationships between the colonized and colonizers.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780241951552

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 07 April 2011

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 10.0mm

Width: 112.0mm

Height: 181.0mm

Weight: 95g

Pages: 160

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Jean Rhys Literary Fiction Penguin Books Series: Penguin Essentials

About the Author

Jean Rhys was born in Dominica in 1890, the daughter of a Welsh doctor and a white Creole mother, and came to England when she was sixteen. Her first book, a collection of stories called The Left Bank, was published in 1927. This was followed by Quartet (originally Postures, 1928), After Leaving Mr Mackenzie (1930), Voyage in the Dark (1934) and Good Morning, Midnight (1939). None of these books was particularly successful and with the outbreak of war they went out of print. Jean Rhys dropped from sight until nearly twenty years later she was discovered living reclusively in Cornwall. During those years she had accumulated the stories collected in Tigers are Better-Looking. In 1966 she made a sensational reappearance with Wide Sargasso Sea, which won the Royal Society of Literature Award and the W. H. Smith Award. Her final collection of stories, Sleep It Off Lady, appeared in 1976 and Smile Please, her unfinished autobiography, was published posthumously in 1979. Jean Rhys died in 1979.

Also by Jean Rhys

View all
  • The Collected Short Stories
    New to Penguin Classics, the remarkable, devastating collected stories by the author of Wide Sargasso Sea. Some of Jean Rhys's most powerful writing is to be found in this rich, dark collection of her collected stories. Her fictional world is haunted by her own, painful memories—of cheap hotels and drab Parisian cafes; of devastating love affairs; of her childhood in...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    $2400
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • On Sale
    25% off
    Voyage in the Dark
    A tragic tale of a young woman's descent into isolation and despair, inspired by Jean Rhys's own experiences. First published in 1934, Voyage in the Dark is the story of an unhappy love affair, a portrait of a hypocritical society, and an exploration of exile and breakdown; all written in Jean Rhys's hauntingly simple and beautiful style. Eighteen, on her...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    $1800
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Wide Sargasso Sea
    Jean Rhys's late, literary masterpiece Wide Sargasso Sea was inspired by Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre and is set in the lush, beguiling landscape of Jamaica in the 1830s. Born into an oppressive, colonialist society, Creole heiress Antoinette Cosway meets a young Englishman who is drawn to her innocent sensuality and beauty. After their marriage, the rumours begin, poisoning her husband...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    $2599
    Backorder
    Ships mid November
  • Good Morning, Midnight
    An unforgettable portrait of a woman bravely confronting loneliness and despair in her quest for self-determination, from the author of Wide Sargasso Sea. Jean Rhys was a talent before her time, with an impressive ability to express the anguish of young, single women. In Good Morning, Midnight, Rhys created the powerfully modern portrait of Sophia Jansen, whose emancipation is far...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Wide Sargasso Sea
    A gorgeous clothbound edition of Jean Rhys's great masterpiece of desire and madness in the Caribbean. Jean Rhys's late masterpiece Wide Sargasso Sea was inspired by Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, and is set in the lush, beguiling landscape of Jamaica in the 1830s. Born into an oppressive, colonialist society, Creole heiress Antoinette Cosway meets a young Englishman who is drawn...
    By Jean Rhys
    Hardback
    $3600
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Good Morning, Midnight
    Good Morning, Midnight
    The last of the four novels Jean Rhys wrote in interwar Paris, Good Morning, Midnight is the culmination of a searing literary arc, which established Rhys as an astute observer of human tragedy. Her everywoman heroine, Sasha, must confront the loves—and losses—of her past in this mesmerizing and formally daring psychological portrait.
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    $4800
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • Wide Sargasso Sea
    Jean Rhys's unique prequel to Jane Eyre, a masterpiece of twentieth-century literature. Jean Rhys's late, literary masterpiece Wide Sargasso Sea was inspired by Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, and is set in the lush, beguiling landscape of Jamaica in the 1830s. Born into an oppressive, colonialist society, Creole heiress Antoinette Cosway meets a young Englishman who is drawn to her innocent...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • After Leaving Mr Mackenzie
    A brilliant, yet brutal, portrait of a woman struggling to retrieve both life and love. For six months, Julia has lived alone in a drab Parisian hotel on an allowance from her ex-lover, Mr Mackenzie. When his cheques stop, Julia decides to leave France and return to London. The tale of her ten-day visit contains some of Jean Rhys's most...
    By Jean Rhys
    Paperback
    Sold Out

Browse lists from our team

The Latest at Book Hero

View all

More from General Fiction

View all
  • On Sale
    13% off
    Lizzy's Pick Lizzy's Pick
    Yesteryear
    A BOLD AND BITING SATIRE. WILL HAVE YOU GASPING TO THE FINAL PAGE — Nita Prose WICKEDLY FUNNY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND FRIGHTENINGLY PERCEPTIVE — Abigail Dean INVENTIVE, ADDICTIVE, A WILD RIDE — Ashley Audrain SHOT THROUGH WITH HUMOUR AND LACED WITH DARKNESS — Clare Mackintosh The Stepford Wives meets The Handmaid's Tale — Hannah Deitch My name was Natalie Heller...
    By Caro Claire Burke
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    14% off
    Dylan's Pick Dylan's Pick
    Theo of Golden
    THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON'For anything to be truly good, there must be love in it. Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core.' One morning, a stranger arrives in the town of Golden. No one knows who he is or where he came from…His name is Theo and he's arrived there by chance –...
    By Allen Levi
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $3499
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Wedding People
    'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people — but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...
    By Alison Espach
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • New Release
    A Court of Splintered Harmony
    Romance, danger, and intrigue await you in the breathtaking sixth book in the #1 bestselling Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series.What was broken will be remade.Deep in the heart of the continent, Koschei the Deathless is stirring. Though he's been bound to a mountain lake for millennia, the insidious threat of his return now spreads across the Fae territories,...
    By Sarah J. Maas
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    10% off
    New Release
    Threshing Day
    The next book in the blockbuster Empyrean series, Threshing Day contains thirteen stories starring your favorite characters and their dragons. The deluxe first edition includes sixteen beautiful original full-color illustrations by artist Joe Requeza.    Rebecca Yarros is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over twenty novels, including Fourth Wing and In the...
    By Rebecca Yarros
    Hardback
    $6300
    Usually:
    $6999
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
    Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...
    By Sarah J. Maas
    Set
    $12400
    Elsewhere:
    $15500
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • New Release
    Lizzy's Pick Lizzy's Pick
    Chain Reaction
    Jack Reacher, \"the coolest continuing series character\" (Stephen King), returns in a brand new, pulse-pounding read from Lee and Andrew Child. The world’s bestselling hero is back in a brand new, high-octane adventure! ‘She knew that finding Reacher would not be easy . . .’ Washington DC. General Susan Turner needs help from the only guy she knows will get...
    By Lee Child and Andrew Child
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    11% off
    Assassin’s Apprentice
    Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb marks the beginning of an extraordinary adventure in the rich and immersive world of the Six Duchies. Set against the backdrop of a kingdom teetering on the brink of civil war, this gripping tale introduces readers to FitzChivalry Farseer, a royal bastard whose existence threatens the stability of the crown. When the crown prince's secret...
    By Robin Hobb
    Paperback
    $1700
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    20% off
    A Court of Thorns and Roses Paperback Box Set (5 books)
    All five of the Court of Thorns and Roses paperbacks packaged together in a gorgeous box set. "Passionate, violent, sexy and daring." —USA TODAY on A Court of Thorns and Roses Feyre is a huntress. The skin of a wolf would bring enough gold to feed her sisters for a month. But the life of a magical creature comes at...
    By Sarah J. Maas
    Set
    $8000
    Elsewhere:
    $12495
    (4)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • Threshing Day
    New Release
    Threshing Day
    The next book in the blockbuster Empyrean series, Threshing Day, contains thirteen stories starring your favourite characters and their dragons. The deluxe first edition includes sixteen beautiful original full-colour illustrations by artist Joe Requeza and silver-gilded edges. *while stock lasts. Discover the beloved world of the record-breaking, multi-million-copy bestselling series where power always demands a price, secrets darken every hallway,...
    By Rebecca Yarros
    Hardback
    $4999
    Elsewhere:
    $5500
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    19% off
    Lizzy's Pick Lizzy's Pick
    John of John
    The stunning new novel from the Booker Prize-winning, Sunday Times-bestselling author of Shuggie Bain and Young Mungo.'John of John has the emotional range and sense of sympathy of his earlier books, but this book is special, it has an urgency, an immediacy, a brilliant sense of place, the drama of fierce emotion repressed, concealed and volcanically exposed' - Colm Tóibín'To read John of John is to move to...
    By Douglas Stuart
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (4)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • On Sale
    14% off
    A Court of Wings and Ruin
    The third instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From multi-million and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas. In A Court of Wings and Ruin, the gripping third book of the ACOTAR series, Feyre Archeron faces the ultimate battle for her world. Having returned to the Spring Court, she is determined to gather...
    By Sarah J. Maas
    Paperback
    $1800
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships Monday

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 200,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.