Lyn Reid Banks and the Brontes IV

The novel is more fun to read as Charlotte was having a livelier life, but she was still lonely and she was pleased when she met Elizabeth Gaskell, who was a well known novelist but a Unitarian. Charlotte took a liking to her; she felt very sorry for Charlotte, especially as she herself was happily married with 4 daughters and a busy life as a minister's wife. She and Charlotte met and talked a lot and then she discovered that Arthur Nicholls had finally proposed to her. Patrick however had taken such a fit of anger at the bare idea that Charlotte hastily dismissed him. She was still not very fond of him... He resigned his curacy and talked of going abroad as a missionary. However he stayed in England and tried to get to see Charlotte again. The villagers when they heard of the proposal, were hostile to Nicholls, feeling that he was not good enough to marry "their Miss Bronte". Although she was in her 30s she felt that she had to obey her father, which was easier as she had no attraction towards Nicholls. She still thought he was narrow minded, not very intellectual and stiff. But she was lonely and began to reconsider, as she could see that he genuinely loved her and that meant a lot to her as none of her previous loves had had more than a liking for her. Patrick still insisted that he did not believe that Nicholls was a suitable husband and that Charlotte was not strong enough for marriage. Mrs Gaskell encouraged Charlotte to consider him as a husband, she wanted her friend to have the married happiness that she had. Patrick had had to take on a new curate a Mr De Renzie to help him and as luck would have it he took a dislike to the man. De Renzie did not endear himself to the villagers and Patrick found him hard to work with. Mr Nicholls began to look a bit better by comparison. Charlotte began to write to Nicholls and met him and then she told Patrick that she wanted to marry him.. and that if she did, he would live with them, and look after the church and be a help to his father in law. Patrick was still stubborn but he could see that having his curate living in his house and taking on most of the parish work, would be an advantage. Tabby, the family housekeeper, now an old lady, told Patrick that he was doing wrong by Charlotte in not wanting her to get married.