This is a strange little book. It is the story of a poor Reverend in a small English town who causes a scandal when a spoiled Countess moves into his house. The book is more like a collection of incidents than a cohesive story, especially in the beginning.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed George Eliot's other works. Like all of Eliot's books, the plot of this one takes a long time to get going. Unfortunately, the book is so short that it's over as soon as it gets interesting. The beginning was very tedious for me. There's not much of a story, and there are a ton of unimportant minor characters who are described in excruciatingly boring detail. The end of the story is way better than the beginning.

My favorite parts of the book are when the narrator talks directly to the reader. Even the narrator admits that the characters are boring.