Thelma

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

3823

Title

Thelma

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

Set in the mystical Norwegian midnight sun, Thelma follows a cynical aristocrat who encounters a singing girl from a fjord cave. The narrative weaves through romance, social satire, and spiritual reflection, exploring themes of love, death, and redemption against a backdrop of breathtaking natural beauty.

Summary up to 500 words

Marie Corelli's *Thelma* weaves a complex narrative that bridges the mystical landscapes of Norway with the vibrant, often cynical society of Victorian London. The story opens in the Arctic circle during the midnight sun, where a cynical, Oxford-educated man named Sir Philip Errington observes the ethereal spectacle alone. His solitude is broken by the arrival of a mysterious Norwegian girl, Thelma, who emerges from a cave. Unlike the stereotypical fisher-maiden, she is a local of unspoiled nature and simple wisdom. Their conversation reveals her innocence and his weariness with idle, modern life, setting a tone that contrasts spiritual yearning with materialist disillusionment. The narrative then shifts to London, introducing Violet Vere, a boisterous and talented actress, and Lady Winsleigh, a society woman. A plot thickens when Lady Winsleigh bribes Vere to stop Errington from interfering in her affairs. It is revealed that Errington is the same man from Norway, and his wife, Thelma, has suffered greatly following her father's death. Her father, Olaf Guldmar, a pagan, chose to die on a ship set ablaze, a tradition that left his daughter desolate. Thelma finds solace and healing only in Errington's enduring love. The novel explores the transformative power of love against the backdrop of social artifice and personal tragedy. Lady Winsleigh eventually reconciles with her husband, finding redemption after her own social martyrdom. Conversely, Violet Vere, despite her talent, dies forgotten by her husband, a victim of the very excesses she indulged in. The story concludes with a poignant cycle of legacy: a young girl named Thelma marries the older Errington, continuing the lineage of the first Thelma. Through these intertwined lives, Corelli argues that love is the only enduring force capable of healing broken hearts and transcending the shifting shadows of existence, whether in the wild fjords of Norway or the drawing rooms of London.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

Download URL

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3823.epub.noimages

Local file path

data/epubs/pg3823.epub

Removed after upload

Downloaded at

2026-07-01 14:40 UTC

Categories

• Fiction
• England
• Norway
• Upper class