Northanger Abbey was among the last of Jane Austen's novels to be published, in 1818, but the first to be written, mostly in 1798-9. Centred on the loves and friendships of Catherine Morland, an endearing young girl extremely fond of novel-reading, it remains the most youthful and optimistic of Jane Austen's novels. During an eventful season in Bath, Catherine meets the sophisticated Henry and Eleanor Tilney who invite her to stay at their father's mysterious house, Northanger Abbey. There Catherine runs into dangers, imaginary and real, and learns how to tell the difference between books and real life, false friends and true. For this completely new edition, Marilyn Butler provides an accurate text based on the first edition complete with introduction and notes. By placing Northanger Abbey firmly in its literary and topical context, Marilyn Butler shows that it is a more sophisticated novel than is often thought, and a sharp social commentary on a consumerist world to which modern readers can easily relate.