Eliza Haywood’s three-volume tale recounts the experiences of one Count D’elmont as he finds—and loses—his way along the often treacherous path to romantic and sexual fulfillment. Part the dashing hero and part the profligate rake, through the fault of others as well as his own, D’elmont becomes enmeshed in a series of compromising relationships. D’elmont’s devotion to the lovely Melliora is the object of dispute throughout, and when this relationship is not directly under threat from such ambitious women as Alovisa, D’elmont himself indirectly threatens it through his participation in a range of complex ménages à trois. Letters intended to circulate privately between lovers are continuously intercepted, and lovers are farcically substituted to comic and tragic effect. However, as the title of the piece suggests, it is not long before D’elmont and others learn the importance of romantic moderation in a world otherwise characterized by passionate excess. When he replaces the mercenary marital ambitions of his early years with the mature embracing of conjugal affection, the hero eventually chooses his spouse based upon moderation, fidelity, and reserve. Along with Robinson Crusoe, Love in Excess was one of the most popular early eighteenth-century novels. Haywood’s frank treatment of desire and sexual passion renders her a key figure in the feminine tradition of amatory fiction that runs from Aphra Behn to Delarivier Manley and beyond. DT