Collected Novels and Novellas - Volume V

In "Cécile," the melancholic Major von Rochow falls in love with the elegant, fascinating, and worldly Cécile, who has a secretive relationship with her considerably older husband. During a spa vacation, the two grow closer—but Cécile's past casts a dark shadow over their potential future. With keen psychological insight, Fontane paints a portrait of love and illusion, social masquerade, and the quiet loneliness lurking behind a perfect facade.
“Grete Minde”, on the other hand, is a deeply moving, almost ballad-like drama of fate:
The young, half-Spanish Grete grows up in Tangermünde under the loveless care of her relatives after the early death of her parents. When she falls in love with the cloth merchant Valtin and elopes with him, she is ostracized. After Valtin's death, she returns with her child – but rejection, pride, and emotional turmoil ultimately drive her to a final, terrible act. Fontane recounts a true story here as a powerfully poetic tragedy about societal coldness and the yearning for justice.
"Collected Novels and Novellas - Volume V" is an unaltered, high-quality reprint of the original edition from 1891.