Publisher's Synopsis
Our Mutual Friend is Charles Dickens's last completed novel, first published in 1864-65. Considered one of his most sophisticated works, Our Mutual Friend centers on, quoting from the character Bella Wilfer in the book, "money, money, money, and what money can make of life." In the opening chapter of Our Mutual Friend, a young man is on his way to receive his inheritance, which, according to his father's will, he can only claim if he marries Bella Wilfer, a beautiful, mercenary girl whom he has never met. However, before he can arrive, a body is found in the Thames and identified as him. The money passes on, instead, to the Boffins, and the effects spread throughout various corners of London society. Our Mutual Friend is largely believed to be the most challenging and complicated novel that Dickens produced, combining savage satire with social analysis. Although at the time of publication reviews were not generally favorable, critical opinion shifted in the century that followed, and it is now considered a true master piece.
