14 minSummaryRead it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook editionPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What chance does love have when one family holds the land and another cannot forget losing it?
In the hills and coastal country of Scotland’s Lammermuir range, Edgar, Master of Ravenswood, lives in poverty at Wolf’s Crag. His family’s estates now belong to Sir William Ashton, a cautious lawyer who fears their former owners. Then love draws Edgar toward Sir William’s gentle daughter, Lucy.
Lucy Ashton longs for peace, but her mother has firm plans for her future. As Lucy and Edgar’s love grows, family pride and inherited bitterness press against it. Walter Scott surrounds their struggle with old rhymes, grim omens and loyal servants, in a Scotland where law, politics and money challenge ancient rank.
What you’ll discover
- Love across a divide Follow Edgar and Lucy as sincere affection grows between two households divided by loss.
- A house under pressure Enter Wolf’s Crag, where a proud young heir lives with poverty and inherited bitterness.
- A servant’s fierce loyalty Meet Caleb Balderstone, ready with any tale that might conceal his master’s reduced circumstances.
- A daughter’s uncertain freedom Watch Lucy’s wish for peace meet Lady Ashton’s strong will and plans for her future.
- Omens over Scottish hills Discover a Gothic world where old rhymes and grim warnings deepen the weight of family conflict.
Who will love it
This book is for readers who love Scottish history, stormy coasts and ruined towers, and for anyone drawn to doomed romance, family feuds, old prophecies and sharp, funny servants.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Love begins inside an inherited feud
- Edgar turns grief into an oath
- A rescue unsettles the old hatred
- A ruined tower offers unexpected shelter
- Trust grows beside concealed calculation
- Lady Ashton breaks the fragile peace
- Control leaves Lucy without reliable hope
- Omens and humor deepen the uncertainty
- Private love bears the feud's weight
Who’s who
- Edgar, Master of RavenswoodThe proud, ruined heir of an ancient family, he swears revenge on his father's enemy but is drawn to that enemy's daughter.
- Lucy AshtonGentle and shy, she loves old romances and falls in love with the man who saved her life, though her family opposes him.
- Sir William AshtonA cautious lawyer and the Lord Keeper, he took the Ravenswood lands and now fears the consequences while still seeking his own advantage.
- Lady AshtonProud, clever and domineering, she wants her family to rise and will do anything to break her daughter's bond with Ravenswood.
- Caleb BalderstoneThe old servant of Wolf's Crag, he tells endless lies and plays tricks to hide his master's poverty and protect the family name.
- Hayston of BucklawA blunt, good-humored young laird who gambles away his money, befriends Ravenswood and later seeks Lucy's hand.
- Captain CraigengeltA boastful schemer and hanger-on who pushes Bucklaw and stirs trouble wherever he goes.
- Old AliceA blind, wise old woman and former servant of the Ravenswoods, she warns both Sir William and the Master of danger.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook opens when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
The Bride of Lammermoor in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
The Bride of Lammermoor
by Walter Scott · 1819
A ruined lord swears revenge at his father's grave, then falls in love with the daughter of his enemy.
Challenging5–10 hours to read20 languages
Learn a language with challenging classicsSpanishFrenchGermanItalianJapanesePortugueseEnglishHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeRenews every year · Cancel anytimeHow it works
- Read, large type too
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
“an author to whom Karl Marx again and again returned, whom he admired and knew as well as he did Balzac and Fielding.”
In short
Picture a young lord at his father's grave, one hand on his sword, swearing to repay the man who ruined his family. A few months later he shelters that man's daughter under his own crumbling roof, and the oath begins to loosen.
The Bride of Lammermoor at a glance
- Reading time
- About 8 h 10 min6 h 25 min fast, 9 h 40 min slow
- Length
- 116,100 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1819by Walter Scott
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A painter's sketch starts a borrowed story
The novel opens not with the lovers but with a storyteller named Peter Pattieson, a schoolmaster who gathers tales for his patron. He would rather stay hidden, like the showman of a puppet play. This is Scott's way of keeping his own name out of the book.
Pattieson describes his friend Dick Tinto, a painter who began by decorating inn signs. Tinto shows him a sketch of an old hall. A beautiful young woman watches in frozen terror while a proud young man argues with an older woman whose face is hard and unmoved.
Renews every year · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer. Your place follows you, and you can make the type as big as you like.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1819
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 9 h 20 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Scott, Walter. The Bride of Lammermoor. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-bride-of-lammermoor.
Scott, W. (2026). The bride of Lammermoor. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-bride-of-lammermoor (Original work published 1819)
Scott, Walter. The Bride of Lammermoor. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-bride-of-lammermoor.
@book{scott2026bride,
author = {Scott, Walter},
title = {The Bride of Lammermoor},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-bride-of-lammermoor},
note = {First published 1819}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every eBookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about The Bride of Lammermoor
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Bride of Lammermoor about?
It follows Edgar Ravenswood, a ruined Scottish lord, who swears revenge on the lawyer who took his family's lands and then falls in love with that lawyer's daughter, Lucy Ashton, as family pride and ambition close in around them.
Is The Bride of Lammermoor based on a true story?
Yes, in part. Scott says in his preface that he built the novel on a real tragedy in a noble Scottish family, which he heard from relatives. It was published in 1819 as one of his Tales of My Landlord.
Who is Caleb Balderstone?
Caleb is the old servant who looks after Edgar at Wolf's Crag. He is fiercely loyal and tells endless clever lies to hide the family's poverty, which gives the novel much of its humor.
The author
Walter Scott
1771–1832 · Scottish novelist and poet
Walter Scott (1771–1832) was a Scottish novelist, poet and playwright. He was born in Edinburgh and lived in Scotland, including at Abbotsford near Melrose, where he died. He wrote Marmion (1808), The Lady of the Lake (1810), Waverley (1814), Rob Roy (1817) and Ivanhoe (1819).
“I bide my time”
More by Walter Scott
See all their booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
