A classic of Spanish realism recounting the impossible love between a nun and a Galician doctor.
The work was published in 1889 in Madrid in two volumes, with a run of two thousand copies. It is undoubtedly the most famous work by the man of letters Armando Palacio Valdes, one of the main exponents of Spanish realism in the 19th century. The novel, with its local customs and manners and set in Andalusia, recounts the impossible love between a nun who wishes to escape her convent and a Galician doctor. It was a resounding success at the time, especially amongst female readers.
Such success led to it being translated into French, English, Dutch, Swedish, Russian, Portuguese and Italian. In 1927 the director Florián Rey adapted the novel for the screen, which was the film debut of Flamenco singer Imperio Argentina.
