Book excerpt: Olinda's Adventures: The Amours of a Young Lady is a story of a young middle-class English woman told through the series of letters she writes to her platonic confidant Cleander. Olinda lives in 18th century London in humble and modest conditions and she folds under her mother's persuasion and agrees to an arranged marriage out of interest, while also having a lover who is married. As she pours her heart on the paper in her letters to Cleander, spilling the emotional dilemmas and asking for approval and support, Olinda also follows the progress of Cleander's wooing to Ambrisia, advising him on his moves.