"Beatrice" is a novel written by H. Rider Haggard. The book follows the love story between Beatrice Granger, a young and unmarried school teacher, and Geoffrey Bingham, a married barrister from London who is unhappy in his marriage. The novel explores the emotional and psychological turmoil experienced by the two characters as they navigate their way through a forbidden love affair. As their relationship deepens, Beatrice and Geoffrey are forced to confront the social and moral implications of their love, including the disapproval of society and the impact on Geoffrey's marriage. How will they overcome society's taunts? Will they ever get together? Will Geoffrey get a divorce from his wife? Haggard masterfully captures the emotional intensity of the two lovers and their struggles with the conventions of the time. "Beatrice'' is a gripping and emotionally charged novel that delves deep into the complexities of love, morality, and societal expectations. It is a timeless story that continues to resonate with readers today, over a century.
H. Rider Haggard was born on 22 June, 1856 in Braden ham, situated in the English area of Norfolk. His father, Sir William Meybohm Rider Haggard, was a lawyer, while his mother, Ella Dove ton Haggard, was an author herself. The couple had ten children, out of which Henry was conceived as the eighth. Sir Henry Rider Haggard was an English author who was known for his African thriller novel, 'Lord Solomon's Mines'. His father was a Norfolk advocate but he was denied an honourable men's schooling compared to his siblings due to his physical bluntness. At 19 years old, he started his vocation at the command of his father as an unpaid guide to Lieutenant-Governor of the Colony of Natal. Rider Haggard was married to a Norfolk beneficiary Marianna Louisa Margitson. They had four children named Jack, who died at the age of 10 due to measles, and three girls named Angela, Dorothy, and Lilias. Rider Haggard died at the age of 68 in London. His remains were cremated at St Mary's Church, Ditchingham. A rail route point of the Canadian National Railway in British Columbia has been named after him.
