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Dering Family #2
Music in the Hills
“I like Mureth,” declared Lady Shaw. “There’s something about Mureth.”
“It does things to people,” Mamie agreed.
Lady Shaw considered this. It sounded silly, but was it really silly. People said that Mamie Johnstone was a fool, and it was true that sometimes she said things that sounded foolish … but the things she did were wise.
Mamie Johnstone, sister of Caroline Dering whom we met in Vittoria Cottage, and her husband Jock are popular figures in the village of Mureth, not far from the town of Drumburly in the Scottish Borders. Jock and Mamie have no children to inherit their farm, so they have adopted Caroline’s son James. But James arrives at Mureth a bit shell-shocked from having proposed to Rhoda Ware, a successful London artist he has loved for years, and being refused. James buries himself in farming with Jock, and takes comfort in the company of Holly Douglas, a niece of the local gentry.
Fortunately for all involved, there is Mamie to do wise things and ensure that all is put right in the end! This new edition features an introduction by Alexander McCall Smith.
“Mistress of the light novel” The Times
234 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1950
About the author
D.E. Stevenson
72 books669 followersThere is more than one author with this name
Dorothy Emily Stevenson was a best-selling Scottish author. She published more than 40 romantic novels over a period of more than 40 years. Her father was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson.
D.E. Stevenson had an enormously successful writing career: between 1923 and 1970, four million copies of her books were sold in Britain and three million in the States. Like E.F. Benson, Ann Bridge, O. Douglas or Dorothy L. Sayers (to name but a few) her books are funny, intensely readable, engaging and dependable.
Dorothy Emily Stevenson was a best-selling Scottish author. She published more than 40 romantic novels over a period of more than 40 years. Her father was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson.
D.E. Stevenson had an enormously successful writing career: between 1923 and 1970, four million copies of her books were sold in Britain and three million in the States. Like E.F. Benson, Ann Bridge, O. Douglas or Dorothy L. Sayers (to name but a few) her books are funny, intensely readable, engaging and dependable.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 152 reviews
February 3, 2016
These books are comfort books for me. They may not be "great" literature, but they make me feel better when I am stressed and sad, and deserve every star for just that. The author creates a quiet world in which small things happen, but they happen to lovely characters about whom I care deeply. In this world, small events have a big impact. These books are a bit old-fashioned in the way they see the relationships between men and women, but it reflects the time during which they were written, and I take it in stride. It is lovely to know her books are being re-issued, and I have many left to read. It is an abundance of comfort awaiting me.
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October 21, 2022Another delightful DE Stevenson expanding on the Vittoria Cottage story, which basically gives you the feeling of being in the world's most comforting and least dramatic soap opera. Dean Street Press deserve medals for bringing these books back into print: I'm eating them like Prozac.
BTW if you are panicking because you tried to search Dering Family book 3 and Goodreads told you it was 'Shoulder the Sky' but you can't find it anywhere, it's published by Dean St as Winter and Rough Weather. That's the original UK title of this UK set book by a UK author, so of course we should prioritise the US edition.
BTW if you are panicking because you tried to search Dering Family book 3 and Goodreads told you it was 'Shoulder the Sky' but you can't find it anywhere, it's published by Dean St as Winter and Rough Weather. That's the original UK title of this UK set book by a UK author, so of course we should prioritise the US edition.
July 14, 2025
Another cosy and satisfying read.
February 9, 2017
D.E. Stevenson is such a good writer.
Unfortunately I guess I can understand why she's not more popular today--her style doesn't necessarily have a lot of zip. But sometimes you don't want zip. I like what one review (quoted on the back of this book) said: "She creates a small world of tempests and ripples in a teacup."
So, this book is a bit different from the Miss Buncle books, or from Bel Lamington (although there are some crossover characters with Bel Lamington). This one is set in Scotland. So there's much more of a country feel to it, and it's quite reflective. There are plenty of well-written characters.
James, who is somewhere in his 20's, has come to live with his uncle and aunt and learn the business of farming. He's fresh off a disappointment in love, and he is sad over it, but determined to make a go of his chosen career, farming. His uncle and aunt quickly take him to their heart and see with pleasure the way he loves the land and how he makes their way of life his. The rest of it is neighbors, friends, episodes, actions and reactions, etc.
I think I've used this word about a number of books recently, but it truly is cozy.
I think D.E. Stevenson and Angela Thirkell could both drive me slightly crazy with the way that characters keep showing up in subsequent stories. It seems they don't either of them exactly write sequels, but they re-use enough of their people to where one still feels obligated to go and hunt up the DOZENS of other books, because they're all connected. It would be much less of a hassle if my libraries actually had some of their books, but instead I am forced to monitor used book sales. Oh, well, I guess that means that for a while to come I can enjoy a slow trickle of new and enjoyable books, since it will take me a while to accumulate more.
Unfortunately I guess I can understand why she's not more popular today--her style doesn't necessarily have a lot of zip. But sometimes you don't want zip. I like what one review (quoted on the back of this book) said: "She creates a small world of tempests and ripples in a teacup."
So, this book is a bit different from the Miss Buncle books, or from Bel Lamington (although there are some crossover characters with Bel Lamington). This one is set in Scotland. So there's much more of a country feel to it, and it's quite reflective. There are plenty of well-written characters.
James, who is somewhere in his 20's, has come to live with his uncle and aunt and learn the business of farming. He's fresh off a disappointment in love, and he is sad over it, but determined to make a go of his chosen career, farming. His uncle and aunt quickly take him to their heart and see with pleasure the way he loves the land and how he makes their way of life his. The rest of it is neighbors, friends, episodes, actions and reactions, etc.
I think I've used this word about a number of books recently, but it truly is cozy.
I think D.E. Stevenson and Angela Thirkell could both drive me slightly crazy with the way that characters keep showing up in subsequent stories. It seems they don't either of them exactly write sequels, but they re-use enough of their people to where one still feels obligated to go and hunt up the DOZENS of other books, because they're all connected. It would be much less of a hassle if my libraries actually had some of their books, but instead I am forced to monitor used book sales. Oh, well, I guess that means that for a while to come I can enjoy a slow trickle of new and enjoyable books, since it will take me a while to accumulate more.
February 4, 2023
Giving this all the stars for sheer enjoyment.
In this, the second book in the Dering Family series, the scene moves to the Scottish Borderlands, where D. E. Stevenson lived. The first book was centered on Caroline Dering, a fortyish widow; this one turns to her adult son, James. After serving in Malaya for several years, James has come back to Britain and aspires to be a farmer. Conveniently enough, his mother’s sister had married one and the marriage is childless. So James heads for their Scottish farm, Mureth, to try out the life and see whether he is certain that farming is for him (in those days, you picked a profession and stuck to it).
He loves his uncle and aunt and they love him; even more important, he loves Mureth and the people who work it. So his future is never much in doubt. But Stevenson firmly holds that man does not live by his profession alone, and therefore there must be a romance. In book 1 of the series, James had proposed to the daughter of a neighbor, Rhoda Ware, and she had turned him down because she was devoted to her painting. So Rhoda is off in London and James is in the Borderlands, where there is a convenient beauty who seems like a contender. Will he be tempted away from the love of his life?
The book approaches this central question with far less breathlessness than I have used in describing it. In fact, for much of the book it hardly seems relevant. Lovers of the romance genre would be disappointed by the little time given to interactions between James and either lady (though one scene in which the two contenders for James’s affection actually meet and spar will delight them; it is a triumph of smiling viciousness). But Stevenson, along with many writers of her era, clearly feel that love is a contextual phenomenon: it grows where the soil is rich and the weather accommodating. Attachment can’t flourish in isolation; it requires a variety of other circumstances to grow strong.
And that’s where Stevenson’s love of the place she’s writing about takes center stage. Most of her books feature characters who appreciate the natural world and country living, but here the hills and burns of southern Scotland, the moon and the fields, are worshipped with a lyricism that almost overtakes the story. It makes sense that it should do so, however, because that love of place shapes all the main characters and lends them a calm centeredness essential to their relationships.
It is that relationship of people and place that gives this book its heart and its mood and made it such a pleasure for me to read. I thoroughly liked the people in it and saw the world the way they saw it and wished them all the very best outcome. Stevenson has the commonsense to give it to them.
In this, the second book in the Dering Family series, the scene moves to the Scottish Borderlands, where D. E. Stevenson lived. The first book was centered on Caroline Dering, a fortyish widow; this one turns to her adult son, James. After serving in Malaya for several years, James has come back to Britain and aspires to be a farmer. Conveniently enough, his mother’s sister had married one and the marriage is childless. So James heads for their Scottish farm, Mureth, to try out the life and see whether he is certain that farming is for him (in those days, you picked a profession and stuck to it).
He loves his uncle and aunt and they love him; even more important, he loves Mureth and the people who work it. So his future is never much in doubt. But Stevenson firmly holds that man does not live by his profession alone, and therefore there must be a romance. In book 1 of the series, James had proposed to the daughter of a neighbor, Rhoda Ware, and she had turned him down because she was devoted to her painting. So Rhoda is off in London and James is in the Borderlands, where there is a convenient beauty who seems like a contender. Will he be tempted away from the love of his life?
The book approaches this central question with far less breathlessness than I have used in describing it. In fact, for much of the book it hardly seems relevant. Lovers of the romance genre would be disappointed by the little time given to interactions between James and either lady (though one scene in which the two contenders for James’s affection actually meet and spar will delight them; it is a triumph of smiling viciousness). But Stevenson, along with many writers of her era, clearly feel that love is a contextual phenomenon: it grows where the soil is rich and the weather accommodating. Attachment can’t flourish in isolation; it requires a variety of other circumstances to grow strong.
And that’s where Stevenson’s love of the place she’s writing about takes center stage. Most of her books feature characters who appreciate the natural world and country living, but here the hills and burns of southern Scotland, the moon and the fields, are worshipped with a lyricism that almost overtakes the story. It makes sense that it should do so, however, because that love of place shapes all the main characters and lends them a calm centeredness essential to their relationships.
It is that relationship of people and place that gives this book its heart and its mood and made it such a pleasure for me to read. I thoroughly liked the people in it and saw the world the way they saw it and wished them all the very best outcome. Stevenson has the commonsense to give it to them.
February 23, 2023
4.5 stars
Lovely, lovely, lovely. Old-fashioned, quiet, domestic tale of nice people. Some comedy, some drama, a bit of romance, marvelously realized setting--a perfect respite from the news of the day. Best accompanied by a pot of tea and something sweet to nibble on.
Lovely, lovely, lovely. Old-fashioned, quiet, domestic tale of nice people. Some comedy, some drama, a bit of romance, marvelously realized setting--a perfect respite from the news of the day. Best accompanied by a pot of tea and something sweet to nibble on.
June 20, 2025
Loved this one so much
April 29, 2022
3 1/2 stars
I like borrowing a free Kindle book once a month (I'm a mooch at my core), but life is too short to scroll through all those titles which don't interest me. But one of my friends mentioned getting D.E. Stevenson's books on Kindle Prime so I checked one out.
This is comfort reading through and through, along the lines of O. Douglas, Miss Read, Elizabeth Goudge, and Barbara Pym. Stevenson has been called Mistress of the Light Novel.
The plot was predictable, but one thing made me nervous. A friendship between our twenty something hero and a lonely young teen girl was developed as a potential romance if said hero was willing to wait. What may have been plausible in 1950 had an 'ick' feel in 2016.
Recently I had a lambing experience with my grandson in which I was instructed on the placement of a ewe' s udder (it was much closer to the hind legs than I had supposed, based on my knowledge of human anatomy). So the synchronicity of reading this simple sentence at this moment of my life was sweet.
"Daniel was sitting at a table studying a book about the anatomy of sheep." (smile)
New words: pawky (showing a sly sense of humor) and thole (endure without complaint)
Fun quote: It was pleasant to feel free. Sometimes when you stayed with people they insisted upon entertaining you, filling every moment of your day so that you felt 'cribbed, cabined and confined'..."
I like borrowing a free Kindle book once a month (I'm a mooch at my core), but life is too short to scroll through all those titles which don't interest me. But one of my friends mentioned getting D.E. Stevenson's books on Kindle Prime so I checked one out.
This is comfort reading through and through, along the lines of O. Douglas, Miss Read, Elizabeth Goudge, and Barbara Pym. Stevenson has been called Mistress of the Light Novel.
The plot was predictable, but one thing made me nervous. A friendship between our twenty something hero and a lonely young teen girl was developed as a potential romance if said hero was willing to wait. What may have been plausible in 1950 had an 'ick' feel in 2016.
Recently I had a lambing experience with my grandson in which I was instructed on the placement of a ewe' s udder (it was much closer to the hind legs than I had supposed, based on my knowledge of human anatomy). So the synchronicity of reading this simple sentence at this moment of my life was sweet.
"Daniel was sitting at a table studying a book about the anatomy of sheep." (smile)
New words: pawky (showing a sly sense of humor) and thole (endure without complaint)
Fun quote: It was pleasant to feel free. Sometimes when you stayed with people they insisted upon entertaining you, filling every moment of your day so that you felt 'cribbed, cabined and confined'..."
October 20, 2018
4.5 stars
April 13, 2021
He disfrutado muchísimo de mi estancia en la granja de los Johnsone en las Lowlands escocesas.
La historia no es del todo redonda, a mi me hubiera gustado que se cerraran algunos cabos sueltos. Pero tal vez consiga que todo acabe bien amarrado en el tercer libro. No puedo dar más detalles a este respecto no sólo porque revelaría detalles de este libro sino también del anterior
Es un libro tremendamente entrañable. Sobre todo por Jock y Mamie, los tíos de James, que tienen una de las relaciones más bonitas sobre las que he leído nunca.
La historia no es del todo redonda, a mi me hubiera gustado que se cerraran algunos cabos sueltos. Pero tal vez consiga que todo acabe bien amarrado en el tercer libro. No puedo dar más detalles a este respecto no sólo porque revelaría detalles de este libro sino también del anterior
Es un libro tremendamente entrañable. Sobre todo por Jock y Mamie, los tíos de James, que tienen una de las relaciones más bonitas sobre las que he leído nunca.
January 27, 2023
The view down the valley was wide and free; the winding river, the rounded, rolling hills. The air sparkled so that it was a positive joy to breathe . . . and over the whole place there was a stillness, a peaceful sort of feeling; it was like the feeling one has when the words of a benediction have been uttered and have died away.
Rhoda had quite a good brain (and knew it), but even she found the sermon “a bit stiff,” for Mr. Sim’s theme was the ethical interpretations of history and the varying interactions of the temporal and spiritual powers. As Rhoda looked round at her fellow-worshippers she could not help wondering whether they were taking it all in or whether their rapt expressions were due to pre-occupation with domestic affairs.
“So, Becky, What are you reading?”
“Music in the Hills by D.E. Stevenson.”
“What’s it about?”
“It’s about a young Englishman, disappointed in love, who goes to Scotland to learn to be a sheep farmer. In the 1950’s”
“Oh.”
Whenever I finish a D.E. Stevenson novel, Half the time, it seems like I am declaring it the best I have read yet. Music in the Hills the second in a trilogy begun with Vittoria Cottage, and it has supplanted Katherine Wentworth as my favorite so far (other than the Miss Buncle books). After proposing to Rhoda, the strong-minded and captivating artist we met briefly in the first book, and being turned down, James Dering the beloved son of Caroline the heroine of Vittoria Cottage, goes to live with her sister and her husband’s Scottish estate and sheep farm, Mureth. He has his mind and heart set on being a farmer after being stationed in Malaya during the war. James is one of D.E.Stevenson’s strong, upstanding, handsome, and kind heroes. He was lovely, although on two occasions I wanted to slap him up the side of the head.
We meet lots of interesting characters at Mureth and the environs. The main characters, self-deprecating, vague, but wise Mamie, strong and straight Jock, pretty vivacious Holly, fairy-like Eleanor, Daniel the shepherd, and community and duty-obsessed Lady Shaw, would all take pages or at least paragraphs to describe satisfactorily. Even the ones who put in the briefest of appearances have something distinctive about them for good or bad. The ones we are meant to scorn, I disliked intensely (narcissistic bully Sir Andrew, Lady Shaw’s husband, and the self-important entitled Londoner who buys a neighboring estate. He doesn’t understand his house, the people, or the land and doesn’t care to.)
There are quite a few plot threads to keep things interesting. Lady Shaw’s conniving niece Holly’s pursuit of James, for one. We know Lady Shaw’s pretty niece is not right for him right away.
You don’t *like* London do you?”
“No, of course not. I’m really a country person.” She did not look like a country person. Even James, who knew very little about women’s clothes, had a feeling that Holly’s green frock was a town rather than a country garment and her shoes had been made to walk upon London pavements rather than in country lanes. He took her hand to help her down the uneven steps.
It takes James, naive in the ways and wiles of women quite some time for the light to fully dawn. We fear for him. When the vibrant unconventional Rhoda tears up on her motorcycle and knocks on Mureth’s door, we breathe a sigh of relief. We also fear for Eleanor, Lady Shaw’s young daughter. Though surrounded by family, she is virtually alone in the world with her books, dreaming her life away. James takes to her immediately and enlists reluctant Mamie to help rescue her. What will happen when sweet and timid Mamie gets up the gall to talk to the self-important human steamroller who is Lady Shaw about her parenting? I was on the edge of my seat. Meanwhile, someone is rustling the Mureth sheep. Suspicion falls on a likable character we know has got to be innocent. What is going on? James gets on the bad side of the powerful new neighbor who unbelievably shoots at a sheepdog. When he throws a citified party to introduce himself to his country neighbors, danger lurks everywhere. By the end, the good and strong are set apart from the bad or weak. Then we have the petty feuds and rivalries, Lizzie the housekeeper and her detachment from her children, the gossip, a country party that almost leads to disaster, stalking sheep rustlers, hunting, fishing, and traipsing through the hills. I for sure did not like the direction that Eleanor and James’ relationship hinted at going, but all was pulled back just in time. What was he thinking? But I choose not to dwell on it, and take it as innocent as it was no doubt meant to be.
Despite the fact that I had another book waiting to be read, I had to pivot and go right on to the sequel, Winter and Rough Weather. It was too soon to leave the world of Mureth and its people. I had to keep accompanying them on their journeys for a little while longer. I hope Eleanor is suitably sorted in Book #3.
https://rebekahsreadingsandwatchings....
February 23, 2017
As usual, I thoroughly enjoyed Ms. Stevenson's style of writing. However, I had a couple of bones of contention:
1. Did anyone else want to slap James upside his head? Firstly, because of his petulent attitude towards his mother's remarriage, and secondly, because of his complete lack of constancy toward the woman he loved. I just couldn't view him with a very sympathetic eye.
2. I'm not a fan of such an abrupt ending.
1. Did anyone else want to slap James upside his head? Firstly, because of his petulent attitude towards his mother's remarriage, and secondly, because of his complete lack of constancy toward the woman he loved. I just couldn't view him with a very sympathetic eye.
2. I'm not a fan of such an abrupt ending.
August 22, 2017
These abrupt endings are a bit frustrating! First Vittoria Cottage and now this one.
This second book in the Dering family trilogy focuses on Caroline's son, James. Caroline herself is hardly mentioned which was frustrating as I wanted more about her and what happened after Vittoria Cottage's abrupt ending. Instead I just get another abrupt ending involving different characters.
This second book in the Dering family trilogy focuses on Caroline's son, James. Caroline herself is hardly mentioned which was frustrating as I wanted more about her and what happened after Vittoria Cottage's abrupt ending. Instead I just get another abrupt ending involving different characters.
February 14, 2017
A quiet and beautiful read-I really enjoyed this story!
March 16, 2019
The sequel to Vittoria Cottage focuses on James, who has taken up his Uncle Jock's offer to learn how to run his farm nestled in the picturesque Scottish countryside. Pining after the beauteous Rhoda, the golden-haired girl of his dreams who turned down his offer of proposal because she is dedicated to painting, James devotes himself to learning how to become the best farmer he can be. This proves difficult at times, for he must deal with sheep rustlers, getting to know the local customs, and not being distracted by the temptress niece of the local gentry.
While the story at times seems to be ever so slowly pedaling along to an anticipated conclusion, it's at the same time a pleasant exercise in learning how to revel in the pace of Scottish country life. This is DE Stevenson at her best.
Her characters, from minor to main, are drawn out into fully-developed people with likable nuances that make them practically walk off the page. As James yearns for Rhoda, we hold our breath as he nearly makes two very bad decisions with his future. Jock and Mamie's relationship makes a person believe in marriage, which compounds James' longing to settle down with the right girl. It's not until the last page readers get a hint of this being a possibility. Stevenson knows how create a cliff-hanger, that's for sure. All the more reason to look for the next book in the series.
While the story at times seems to be ever so slowly pedaling along to an anticipated conclusion, it's at the same time a pleasant exercise in learning how to revel in the pace of Scottish country life. This is DE Stevenson at her best.
Her characters, from minor to main, are drawn out into fully-developed people with likable nuances that make them practically walk off the page. As James yearns for Rhoda, we hold our breath as he nearly makes two very bad decisions with his future. Jock and Mamie's relationship makes a person believe in marriage, which compounds James' longing to settle down with the right girl. It's not until the last page readers get a hint of this being a possibility. Stevenson knows how create a cliff-hanger, that's for sure. All the more reason to look for the next book in the series.
March 27, 2024
I adored Vittoria Cottage which is the first book in the Dering Family trilogy. It took me much longer to get invested in Music in the Hills and, even then, there were some characters in this book that I never warmed to. While I enjoyed it, it was nowhere near as good as Vittoria Cottage. I am looking forward to the third book in the series and hoping that one ends the trilogy on an up note.
July 19, 2017
I read this on the heels of book one (Vittoria Cottage) and I'm so glad I did. It was wonderful reading a story in which you knew the back story of the characters. Stevenson's writing is lovely. Mureth Farm is enchanting. I loved young James and his kindly ways. A lovely book!
January 11, 2026
This was just lovely. D.E. Stevenson is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I love the places and the people she created. Although this book was so short, I felt like I had such a good sense of the characters and the village of Mureth. I especially loved Mamie and Jock, I thought they had a realistic and refreshing relationship. I did not want the book to end, I just wanted to keep wandering around in the book.
December 25, 2023
4.5 ⭐️ I enjoyed this one even more than the first. ❤️
May 29, 2026
This is one of those quiet books that steals over you and settles into your heart. A farm in the hills of Scotland, a wise farmer and his even wiser and gentle wife. Petty squabbles among the farm workers, and a young man determined to learn the business and learn it well. Sure, his heart is a bit broken, and yes, he decides he wants a home and family, but this is more of a romance of a LIFE rather than two people (and if you're looking for romance, you'll get the hope of some and that's about it).
I don't know why I gave it five stars. I can't say. But I do know I couldn't give it any less.
I don't know why I gave it five stars. I can't say. But I do know I couldn't give it any less.
November 6, 2022
Another charming cozy reading. Well written. Likable characters (besides main persons, Lizzie, Greta and Mr Couper are especially worth mentioning). Homelike setting. And a bit of wisdom between lines.
One of those books that make you feel better, not in a way that rom-com or chick-lit do it - but more smoothly.
You can read it as a standalone book but if you can - read first Victtoria Cottage.
"She was like a person with too many clothes on, you know. She couldn't feel the warmth of the sun"
One of those books that make you feel better, not in a way that rom-com or chick-lit do it - but more smoothly.
You can read it as a standalone book but if you can - read first Victtoria Cottage.
It is curious but true those who make a habit of saying unkind things are often the most easily hurt and offended when their victims retaliate.
July 22, 2017
Re-read as audiobook.
October 19, 2019
I loved this book, at least as much as Vittoria Cottage. Such a subtle story, where what matters is the characters and how they interact, all set in as charming and peaceful a setting as is possible to imagine.
The older I get, the more I love reading D.E. Stevenson; I could not fully appreciate her books as a younger woman.
The older I get, the more I love reading D.E. Stevenson; I could not fully appreciate her books as a younger woman.
August 12, 2014
Basically, you spend the entire book waiting for something to happen. Then it ends. Stevenson is the worst at endings. The WORST.
Luckily I read the last book in this trilogy first, or I would have given up on it.
Luckily I read the last book in this trilogy first, or I would have given up on it.
November 13, 2015
Another lovely read. Not much is happening, but reading D.E. Stevenson is always a pleasure. On to "Shoulder The Skies"
April 22, 2022
Alas, when Stevenson waxes cringey about race, idiotic about relationships between the sexes, and unorthodox about God, it really detracts from her storytelling.
August 31, 2022
Wonderful! Just a sweet, calm, quiet Scottish romance with enough drama and mystery to make it interesting. I love Stevenson's writing and her sense of nature and calmness :)
September 22, 2020
3.75 stars
This is definitely a 'Marriage Plot' sort of novel, but with two large side dishes of farming life and Scotland to round it out. Mamie and Jock are the elder couple - the owners of a largish estate called Mureth - and they serve as a happy example to Mamie's nephew James, who is 'in need of a wife' (to quote Jane Austen).
The character of James connects the plot to the first novel in the Dering Family trilogy. Not long returned from his post-war military service, James is casting around for a career and a place that he can make home. His mother's marriage (which takes place in Vittoria Cottage, the first novel in the series) has altered his plans of returning to his childhood home; but unbeknownst to James, his childless aunt and uncle have long cherished the idea of making James the heir to Mureth. Now all he needs is the right helpmeet. After being rejected by his childhood love Rhoda, James is briefly attracted to a lovely and charming visitor in the neighbourhood. Of course everyone but James can see that this beguiling match would be a disaster. The predictable workings of this aspect of the plot in no way detract from one's enjoyment of the whole, though, as Stevenson's marriage plots are always just the frame around the more important business of sketching a complete scene. There is a troublesome neighbour and a sheep stealing side-plot, but it all feels like background for the Stevenson's wise musings on human nature and her vivid descriptions of this Scottish Borders community.
The character of Mamie - humble-hearted, but so emotionally astute - is really the centre of the novel, much more so than James. The reader feels connected to the novel through her, and she certainly wields the pen of fate.
Although this novel doesn't engage the interest or emotions to quite the same degree as Vittoria Cottage it was still a pleasure to read.
She knew how wonderful married life could be, but she knew it could be wonderful only if two people were absolutely right for one another and could share all of their pleasures and interests.
This is definitely a 'Marriage Plot' sort of novel, but with two large side dishes of farming life and Scotland to round it out. Mamie and Jock are the elder couple - the owners of a largish estate called Mureth - and they serve as a happy example to Mamie's nephew James, who is 'in need of a wife' (to quote Jane Austen).
The character of James connects the plot to the first novel in the Dering Family trilogy. Not long returned from his post-war military service, James is casting around for a career and a place that he can make home. His mother's marriage (which takes place in Vittoria Cottage, the first novel in the series) has altered his plans of returning to his childhood home; but unbeknownst to James, his childless aunt and uncle have long cherished the idea of making James the heir to Mureth. Now all he needs is the right helpmeet. After being rejected by his childhood love Rhoda, James is briefly attracted to a lovely and charming visitor in the neighbourhood. Of course everyone but James can see that this beguiling match would be a disaster. The predictable workings of this aspect of the plot in no way detract from one's enjoyment of the whole, though, as Stevenson's marriage plots are always just the frame around the more important business of sketching a complete scene. There is a troublesome neighbour and a sheep stealing side-plot, but it all feels like background for the Stevenson's wise musings on human nature and her vivid descriptions of this Scottish Borders community.
The character of Mamie - humble-hearted, but so emotionally astute - is really the centre of the novel, much more so than James. The reader feels connected to the novel through her, and she certainly wields the pen of fate.
Although this novel doesn't engage the interest or emotions to quite the same degree as Vittoria Cottage it was still a pleasure to read.
October 19, 2016
A delightful reread. The only flaw with this book is Rhoda's certainty that she has to choose between being an artist and becoming James' wife. I understand she is a product of her era but 1) she is portrayed as being modern, and 2) being an artist is far more compatible with marriage than most careers and she will have plenty of domestic support. Not to mention, I recall her painting away in the third book of this trilogy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 17, 2016
I got a little bit bogged down in the domesticity of this little novel for a while, but things brightened up a bit towards the middle. It is, after all, comfort reading, so one can't expect many twists and surprises, but the writing is excellent, as usual, even if it is one of D E Stevenson's lesser works.
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