Returning to Hartfield after her father’s death, Linda Dawley found a certain resentment directed towards her.
Certainly, old Mr Ferndale was determined to make up to her the years of unhappiness she had lost, nursing her sick father. And when he gave her the protection of his family and a chance to start a new life in the enchanting paradise of Bermuda, he felt he had achieved his aim.
Surrounded by this gay and torrid atmosphere, Linda began to forget her past hardships and to realise how much she was in love with Angus, the black sheep of the family.
She also became aware of the intense hostility she had aroused amongst certain relatives. Relatives who had resolved to have her disgraced and thrown out of the family.
But Linda had at last found something to live for. It controlled her, caressed her and cherished her; if that, too, was taken away, then only one defeat would remain.