Guy Mannering, or, the Astrologer

Guy Mannering opens with a world ruled by prophecy, conscience, and hidden ties of fate: a Scottish laird is warned by a mysterious astrologer that his newborn son will face a deadly temptation at twenty-one, and the boy is raised in severe religious seclusion to meet that doom. Yet as he nears adulthood, melancholy and inward conflict begin to erode that protection, and his trial becomes more dangerous when he is sent to the astrologer's house and encounters the daughter whose presence unsettles his resolve. Scott's novel also pauses to reflect on the enduring fascination of astrology, the strange limits of prediction, and the real-life figures behind its memorable characters, especially the fierce gipsy Jean Gordon, model for Meg Merrilies, whose rough loyalty and Border legend give the story its wild moral energy. As family fortunes collapse, Glossin's bullying is checked by Mannering, Mr. Bertram dies suddenly, and the household is left in grief and uncertainty. Colonel Mannering offers quiet assistance, Dominie Sampson's comic loyalty softens the sorrow, and Miss Bertram faces an uncertain future, her old home slipping into the hands of fortune and law. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.