The texts in this thematic collection organized around the idea of Loyalty & Betrayal range from Dennis Lehane's Mystic River to Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Sweat. But each book explores the idea in its own way, revealing the intricate ways we may maintain loyalty at all costs — or test the bonds of family and friend relationships through deep betrayal.
Publication year 1719
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Romance, Love / Sexuality, British Literature, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Education, Education, History: World, Classic Fiction
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: The Future, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Siblings, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Romance, Modern Classic Fiction, Contemporary Literature
Publication year 1984
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Win & Lose, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict
Tags Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction
American author Louise Erdrich’s debut novel, Love Medicine, was first published in 1984 to critical acclaim. A bestseller and winner of the 1984 National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction, the novel follows three generations of members from five Ojibwe families in Minnesota and North Dakota. Lyrical, metaphorical, and a complex exploration of oppression, joy, and family, the novel is both a record of history and an analysis of love. Blending the genres of historical... Read Love Medicine Summary
Publication year 1904
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Society: Colonialism
Tags Music, Play: Drama, Italian Literature, Romance
Madam Butterfly is the English adaptation of the tragic Italian opera Madama Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini. It opened in Milan in 1904, and the orchestral score was first published in 1906 by Giulio Ricordi. Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa wrote the libretto (text of the opera). Puccini based his opera on the play by David Belasco and story by John Luther Long, as well as the novel Madame Chrysanthème by Pierre Loti. These sources, and... Read Madame Butterfly Summary
Publication year 2013
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Art, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Natural World: Environment, Life/Time: The Future
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Fantasy
Margaret Atwood’s novel MaddAddam, published in 2013, completes her post-apocalyptic MaddAddam trilogy that begins with Oryx and Crake (2003) and continues with The Year of the Flood (2009). The trilogy takes place in the aftermath of a destroyed technological dystopia, a world in which corporations have totalitarian control. Atwood, an award-winning Canadian author, has been a prolific writer of poetry, short stories, novels, and many other forms since the early 1960s. She is known for... Read MaddAddam Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt
Tags Romance, Fantasy, Drama / Tragedy, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2005
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Siblings, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger
Tags Fantasy, Action / Adventure
Published in 2005, Angie Sage’s Magyk is a middle grade fantasy novel and the first book in the Septimus Heap series. The story follows the adventures of the Heap family, particularly focusing on the seventh son, Septimus Heap. The narrative unfolds with the mysterious disappearance of Septimus on the day of his birth, leading to a magical journey filled with enchanted forests, dark wizards, and hidden secrets. The Heap family navigates a world brimming with... Read Magyk Summary
Publication year 1953
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Relationships: Friendship, Self Discovery, Society: Nation, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Historical Fiction, Ancient Egypt, Children's Literature, Education, Education, History: World, Romance, Action / Adventure, Classic Fiction
Publication year 1969
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Society: War, Natural World: Place, Values/Ideas: Music, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Historical Fiction, History: World, Classic Fiction, Action / Adventure, Military / War
Master and Commander is a historical novel by the English writer Patrick O’Brian. It was first published in 1969, although it is set in 1800. O’Brian’s work is meticulously researched, drawing upon documents from the time period such as naval logs, official letters, and memories of sailors who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. Many of the naval battles described in the novel are based on real events, particularly Lord Thomas Cochrane’s victory over the superior... Read Master and Commander Summary
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Relationships: Friendship, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Realistic Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Bullying, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Children's Literature, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 2023
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Marriage, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Midlife, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Magical Realism, Romance, Fantasy
Publication year 2018
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Friendship, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Self Discovery
Tags Romance, Music
Publication year 1988
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Gender, Identity: Sexuality, Relationships: Marriage, Relationships: Teams, Self Discovery, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Play: Drama
Originally published in 1988, M. Butterfly is a postmodern play by Chinese-American dramatist David Henry Hwang, who also wrote Yellow Face and Bondage. Hwang drew from two sources to compose his text: the 1904 opera Madame Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini and the historical espionage scandal involving French diplomat Bernard Boursicot and Chinese opera singer Shi Pei Pu. The play became Hwang’s best-known work and subsequently received the Tony Award for Best Play in the year... Read M. Butterfly Summary
Publication year 49
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Identity: Femininity, Relationships: Family, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Play: Tragedy, Mythology, Ancient Rome, Philosophy, Philosophy, Drama / Tragedy, Classical Period, Fantasy, Classic Fiction
Publication year 1987
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Relationships: Marriage, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Life/Time: The Past, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia
Tags Lyric Poem, Free verse, Confessional, WWII / World War II, Relationships
Publication year 1998
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Marriage, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Romance, Southern Literature
Message in a Bottle (1998) is the second novel by Nicholas Sparks, the follow-up to his incredibly popular romance, The Notebook. It was inspired by Sparks’s father’s experience after the sudden and unexpected death of Sparks’s mother. They’d been married for 27 years when an accident on a horse led her to develop a cerebral hemorrhage. It was a fluke, a random accident, just like the one that claims Catherine’s life and that of her... Read Message In A Bottle Summary
Publication year 2024
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Society: Nation, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Fantasy, Romance, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, New Adult, Action / Adventure
Publication year 2017
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies
Tags Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Children's Literature, History: World, Arts / Culture
Publication year 1941
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Society: Class, Relationships: Mothers, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Identity: Mental Health, Relationships: Marriage, Identity: Gender
Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, Relationships, Parenting, Class, Business / Economics, Finance / Money / Wealth, Great Depression, American Literature, Love / Sexuality, Gender / Feminism, History: World, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction
Publication year 1996
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Mental Health, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Class, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Realistic Fiction, African American Literature
Miracle’s Boys (2000) is a young adult novel by Jaqueline Woodson. The novel tells the story of three brothers, ages 21, 15, and 12, coping with the sudden death of their mother a year before. The middle brother, Charlie, recently returned home from a juvenile detention facility, where he was serving a two-year sentence for attempting to rob a candy store at gun point. Set in a Puerto Rican neighborhood in New York City, Miracle’s... Read Miracle's Boys Summary