Poldark - by Winston Graham

Tired of a cruel war in America, Ross Poldark returns to his homeland and his family. But the joyous return he expected turns bitter, for his father has died, his estate is abandoned, and the girl he loved is engaged to his cousin. However, his compassion for the district's helpless miners and tenant farmers leads him to rescue a hungry street girl who was fighting at a fair, an act that alters the entire course of his life. Ross Poldark is the first novel in Winston Graham's incredible saga of life in eighteenth-century Cornwall. First published in 1945, the Poldark series has captivated readers for over seventy years. Now, it is a current series, broadcast in prime time, on BBC London.