Margaret Oliphant's Miss Marjoribanks was originally published in serial form in 1865 and as a novel in 1866. Oliphant's novel follows the eponymous Lucilla Marjoribanks, an aristocratic woman forced to live in the backward English town of Carlingford, a fact that she despises. Set in 19th-century England, the novel follows Lucilla as she endeavors to turn Carlingford into a happening town, which will allow her to improve her nascent social life. To that end, she enlists the help of the Carlingford society and parties on Thursday evenings that she begins to throw. Initially, she encounters challenges from the people in her town, many of whom are reluctant to believe in a woman and to take her ambitions seriously. In the end, despite the difficulties she faces, Lucilla, through her intelligence, wit, and determination, succeeds in rediscovering herself and creating a social life for her town.
Despite its age, Miss Marjoribanks is still widely read across the world to this day. In 1992, the novel was also adapted into a television series of the same name for the British Broadcasting Company, or BBC. For instance, in their modern review of the novel, the London Review of Books called the novel "wonderful" and Margaret Oliphant is "underrated."
