Our Mutual Friend

Following his father's death, John Harmon returns to London to claim his inheritance, but he finds he is eligible only if he marries Bella Wilfur. To observe her character, he assumes another identity and secures work with his father's foreman, Mr Boffin, who is also Bella's guardian.

Disguise and concealment play an important role in the novel, and individual identity is examined within the wider setting of London life. In the 1860s, the city was aflame with spiralling financial speculation, while thousands of homeless people scratched a living from the detritus of the more fortunate. Indeed, John Harmon's father has amassed his wealth by recycling waste.

This edition of Our Mutual Friend includes extensive explanatory notes and significant manuscript variants.

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