A Group of Noble Dames

A collection of short stories.  Probably of less interest than the Wessex Tales, or Life's Little Ironies as stories, but interesting as a group.  The title gives it away - this is a collection of stories about interesting women.  As in Tess, Hardy is making women the main characters.  And they are an interesting group for all their different reasons.  They have strong characters, their love lives are complicated, they show bravery and loyalty. 

The whole is wrapped around as a portmanteau story with the conceit of each being told by a member of the Wessex Field and Antiquarian Club.  This was an activity in which Hardy had a great deal of interest, and it was his digging into archives that inspired this book and some other short stories.