One of George Eliot&s most ambitious & imaginative novels Romola is set in Renaissance Florence during the turbulent years following the expulsion of the powerful Medici family during which the zealous religious reformer Savonarola rose to control the city At its heart is Romola the devoted daughter of a blind scholar married to the clever but ultimately treacherous Tito whose duplicity in both love & politics threatens to destroy everything she values & she must break away to find her own path in life Described by Eliot as &written with my best blood& the story of Romola&s intellectual & spiritual awakening is a compelling portrayal of a Utopian heroine played out against a turbulent historical backdrop