Middlemarch, A Study of Provincial Life is a novel by the English author George Eliot, first published in eight instalments in 1871-1872.

The novel is set in the fictitious Midlands town of Middlemarch during 1829-1832, and follows several distinct, intersecting stories with a large cast of characters.

Issues include the status of women, the nature of marriage, idealism, self-interest, religion, hypocrisy, political reform, and education.
(from wikipedia.org)

Mary Ann Evans (1819 - 1880) known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era.

She wrote seven novels, including Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860), Silas Marner (1861), Romola (1862-63), Middlemarch (1871-72), and Daniel Deronda (1876), most of which are set in provincial England and known for their realism and psychological insight.
(from wikipedia.org)