Anthony Trollope - Last Chronicle of Barset

Both Trollope and some of his later critics have considered The Last Chronicle to be his greatest novel. Many of its characters are familiar from the earlier Barsetshire novels, including the Rev. Josiah Crawley, the impoverished curate of Hogglestock, whose alleged theft of £20, together with the efforts of many to clear up the mystery, lie here at the center. Central also is the trying courtship between Major Grantly and Grace Crawley, the clergyman's daughter, over the objections of the Major's parents, Archdeacon Grantly and his wife; and the adventures of Johnny Eames, a protagonist of the Small House at Allington. Finally, it is in The Last Chronicle that Bishop Proudie of Barsetshire and his domineering wife, introduced in Barchester Towers, achieve their fullest and most dramatic portrayal.(Summary by Nicholas Clifford)