Eugenie Grandet #1005308

A young woman torn between love and money. A ruthless father who values gold above everything. A promise that could change a life forever. In the quiet town of Saumur, Eugénie Grandet has grown up under the iron rule of her father, Félix Grandet—a man whose enormous fortune is matched only by his obsession with wealth. Sheltered from the world and unaware of the true extent of her family’s riches, Eugénie lives a simple, almost secluded existence. Then her charming cousin Charles arrives from Paris.
For the first time, Eugénie discovers love, hope, and the possibility of a life beyond her father’s control. But in a world ruled by money, inheritance, ambition, and social expectations, even the purest feelings can come at a devastating price.
With unforgettable characters and extraordinary psychological insight, Honoré de Balzac turns a seemingly simple family story into a powerful exploration of greed, sacrifice, betrayal, and the courage to remain true to oneself.
Eugénie Grandet is one of Balzac’s most celebrated novels: an intense and deeply human classic about what happens when love and wealth demand opposite choices.
A story of passion, money, and lost illusions that remains strikingly modern.

Honoré de Balzac (1799–1850) was one of the most influential French novelists of the nineteenth century and a pioneer of literary realism. He is best known for La Comédie humaine (The Human Comedy), a vast series of novels and stories portraying French society in extraordinary detail. Balzac’s fiction explores ambition, money, love, social class, and power with remarkable psychological depth. His best-known works include Père Goriot, Lost Illusions, Cousin Bette, and Eugénie Grandet. His influence on European literature was profound and continues to be felt today.

Translated by Katharine Prescott Wormeley.