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"The Misfortunes of Elphin" is an 1829 novella by English novelist and poet Thomas Love Peacock. This classic work is republished here together with "Rhododaphne, Or, The Thessalian Spell: A Poem" originally published in 1818. Thomas Love Peacock (18 October 1785 - 23 January 1866) was an English poet, novelist, and important figure in the East India Company. A good friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley, they both had a significant influence on each other's work. Peacock was most famous for writing satirical novels, which usually involved characters sat around a table discussing contemporary philosophical ideas. Other notable works by this author include: "Headlong Hall" (1815), "Melincourt" (1817), and "Nightmare Abbey" (1818). This volume is here republished in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially-commissioned new biography of the author.
About the author
Thomas Love Peacock (1785-1866) was a poet and author. He was a prolific writer, mainly of satirical works, and many critics believe that he and Percy Bysshe Shelley influenced one another's works, since they were close friends. Peacock's father died in reduced circumstances, so the young Thomas was largely self-educated, and spent much time in the Reading Room at the British Library studying the best classical texts he could find. Whilst much of his poetry and essays were very well-thought of, Peacock is best known today for his novels Nightmare Abbey and Melincourt.