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"Marriage is at the centre of Jane Austen's novels. The pursuit of husbands and wives, advantageous matches and, of course, love itself, motivate her characters and continue to fascinate readers today. But what were love and marriage like in reality for the people of Regency England? Rory Muir uncovers the excitements and disappointments of courtship and the pains and pleasures of marriage, drawing on the period's fiction as well as fascinating first-hand accounts. From the glamour of the ballroom to the commonplaces of the marital home, love and marriage came in many guises: some wed happily, some dared to elope, and other relationships ended with acrimony, adultery, domestic abuse or divorce. Muir also carefully considers the position of Regency women in marriage, and those spinsters and bachelors who chose not to marry at all. This is a richly textured account of how love and marriage felt for people at the time - revealing their unspoken assumptions, delights and pleasures, and innermost thoughts"--