Death in Venice (1913), by Thomas Mann, is a tragic tale of an acclaimed author's obsession for a young boy and an exploration of the nature of beauty.

The Awakening (1899), by Kate Chopin, is a novel of a young woman who struggles to find self-knowledge and inevitably suffers the consequences of trying to establish herself as an independent spirit.

Lolita (1955), by Vladimir Nabokov, focuses on the relationship between a young girl and an older man.

"The Demon Lover," one of Bowen's most popular stories, focuses on a woman whose lover is killed in the war.