In which Italian city was George Eliot's novel 'Romola' set?
Romola Romola Romola (1862–63) is a historical novel by George Eliot set in the fifteenth century, and is "a deep study of life in the city of Florence from an intellectual, artistic, religious, and social point of view". The story takes place amidst actual historical events during the Italian Renaissance, and includes in its plot several notable figures from Florentine history. The novel first appeared in fourteen parts published in "Cornhill Magazine" from July 1862 (vol. 6, no. 31) to August 1863 (vol. 8, no. 44), and was first published as a book, in three volumes, by Smith, Elder & Co.
Romola it is isolated from her other novels, which were set in 19th-century England. Also for the first time, George Eliot published her story in serialised format and with a different publisher. Smith, Elder & Co. reportedly paid Eliot £7,000 for the novel, but was less than satisfied at the commercial outcome. Richard Hutton, in the mid-19th century, acknowledged that "Romola" would never be one of her most popular novels. Nevertheless, Hutton described the novel as "one of the greatest works of modern fiction […] probably the author's greatest work". George Eliot herself described her labour in writing the novel as