persuasion - jane austen (1816)

i've just finished rereading this classic rendition of the restrained tendresse genre, where half the story takes place in anne elliot's thoughts. this is vastly different from today's romances, where the hero and heroine draw all manner of uninhibited sparks from each other on their way to some soft porn action.

of all the showdown scenes i know, this is the most moving, where anne says (and not even to frederick wentworth), all the privilege i claim... is that of loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone, and the reader knows she is speaking from heartbreak.

this is hands down my all time favorite chick lit book.