Written when George Gissing was a struggling unknown novelist in his mid-twenties, this sprawling work of Victorian realism and romance is an ambitious achievement that far exceeds the author's age and experience. The novel centers on friends Osmond Waymark and Julian Casti, both part of the bohemian literary intelligentsia of the era. Waymark has plans and strong ideals, but his path forward in life is hindered by the fact that he's torn between two very different women.