By D.E. Stevenson
**Spoilers**
This was a delight from beginning to end. In addition, the narrator, Candida Gubbins, was terrific. I enjoy D.E. Stevenson’s books greatly but often with reservations. Sometimes her abrupt endings are a little too abrupt leaving loose ends untied. She often avoids drama like it is something to be ashamed of, so that the most interesting and looked for scenes happen off stage. Her heroines are too often too obtuse, passive, or too averse to pursuing their own happiness or doing what needs to be done for their own good. Sometimes to the point that they cause others to suffer along with them (until it all comes right in the end, of course.) Not so with this one!
Our heroine, Barbie France, has been very ill and has been hospitalized, but is getting worse, not better. Her good friend and roommate, Nell, decides that the atmosphere in London, and lack of peace in the hospital is to blame for her friend’s depression, and maneuvers matters with the help of her doctor/boss to get her to Barbie’s loving aunt at her country home, Underwoods, where she can recover. It does the trick, and soon Barbie is fully recovered under the loving care of her Aunt Amelie and her companion, Penney. Nell has a story too, and there is a secondary romance.
Barbie’s London career as an Interior Decorator (she’s awesome. She loves her job and is great at it) is on hold. While at Underwoods, she attends the wedding of a childhood playmate, and meets a tall stranger at the reception. They are immediately drawn to each other and Barbie invites him to tea the next day. Strangely, he stands her up, and Barbie is very angry and wonders why she feels so upset by such a relatively unimportant snub by someone she hardly knows. Meanwhile, Edward Steyne, Aunt Amalie’s beloved stepson, and her childhood friend appears on the scene. Edward is a charmer and a gadabout. Aunt Amalie seems relieved that he appears to finally be settling down to a respectable job in the city. It’s not long before Edward proposes marriage and Barbie accepts. Partly because she and Edward have always been fond of each other, partly because she thinks it would make Aunt Amalie happy, and partly because Aunt Amalie has told her that her late husband was very insistent that Barbie inherit Underwoods upon her death, not his own son, Edward, and she feels bad about that. Also, why did he want his beloved Underwoods in his nieces hands rather than his own son?
The reader has already picked up on some clues as to Edward’s true character and on the way back to London, Edward unintentionally reveals his true self to Barbie. To my amazement, having been disappointed too often in the past with Stevenson’s heroines, Barbie acts decisively and doesn’t back down. I was thrilled.
We spend some time back in London where we meet up with Nell again, get to know a bedraggled little 8 year old and her floozy mother, and see Barbie settling back into her career in London. It will not be a surprise to anyone even vaguely familiar with D.E. Stevenson’s novels that Barbie is sent to a Scottish castle on a decorating job. It will also not be a surprise that the Wedding Guy just happens to be visiting his sister, Barbie’s client, there. Yes he is her destiny. Henry is just as nice and upstanding as he was at the Wedding, and when he explains what happened to cause him to ghost her, Barbie is even more disgusted with Edward. I had some concerns about Henry when he tried to rush her into a quick marriage. He started to seem as wheedling and manipulative as Edward was except he had a good heart and really loved her. But that impression was put to rest when he was happy for Barbie to continue her career even after marriage. Also, Barbie had already proven her strong-mindedness and steely character. It was no surprise that her common sense and caution prevailed.
It all comes together in a very satisfactory conclusion. The mistreated little London child even gets a happy ending and Edward’s true character is exposed to all who matter. Unfortunately, that includes Aunt Amalie and I was saddened by her sorrow and disappointment. **4 1/2 stars**