Una Beaumont wants to go to London to act on the stage. Of course she doesn't have the money to make the trip and neither does her father, a widower, who raises violets among other things greenery-yallery. Well maybe not actually g-y, I just love the word and can't help myself. Like a Mr. Mybug, I guess. Una delivers flowers for her father and bides her time.
One day she meets the Willowses and falls in love with the young painter of sand and stones. The thing is doomed from the start as the painter is a pillow soft element concerned only with his art. The artists sister has a few romantic moments with one of the voters of Tregulla. It comes to nothing much and the young woman dies after a brief illness that takes away the use of her limbs. Of the two our sympathy goes with the young woman. No contest.
The story ends with Una getting ready to leave for London and her beloved Stage. Her father has re-married. A woman of some wealth who makes it possible for the Beaumont's to follow their bliss. It's a little odd that Una's father is the only one in the story to have any success in the field of Romance.
As usual Gibbons is always at her best describing Nature. I don't know why but Gibbon's novels, the feeling in G's novels reminds me of the feeling in Loren Eiseley's , ALL THE STRANGE HOURS. Don't ask. ( )

Ok, here's yet another Stella Gibbons book that no one else seems to have. I was most fortunate to find this copy on Ebay for a reasonable price. It has the original dustjacket and a lovely mylar covering to protect it.
The plot is uneven and the ending is just....not quite right. Stella Gibbons, in my opinion, doesn't ever end her books in a satisfactory way. I’m not saying that I have to like the endings or agree with them….but, they seem almost like non-endings…like she just doesn’t know how to end so she sort of collapses everything or she tersely discusses the future deaths of her characters or forces a happy ending. This gives her books an unfinished feel sometimes.
I enjoyed reading this book though. Even when I hate the endings, I still enjoy her books because her characters are always interesting. She’s also very good at descriptions of scenery, which I don’t typically enjoy. She must have traveled a good deal throughout her life. ( )