In the sunlit forest of Fontainebleau, Daphne revels in midsummer freedom, delighting in the wild beauty of the French landscape and in her own bright, independent spirit. School has been disrupted by illness, and while practical Martha Dibb frets over discipline and propriety, Daphne treats the chance to escape Asnieres and its governesses as a mischievous holiday. Her comic failure at sketching leads to an unexpected meeting with a shabby, handsome young artist whose calm advice, easy wit, and hungry, rootless air immediately mark him as someone unusual. At a hillside picnic, Daphne's impulsive generosity draws him into their meal, scandalizing Martha and deepening the sense of playful impropriety. When he asks to sketch Daphne, the encounter becomes a quietly charged portrait of youth, art, and attraction, touched by loneliness beneath the banter. Elsewhere, Gerald Goring, wealthy, gifted, and restless, reflects on his privileged life, his engagement to Madoline, and his unresolved feelings for Daphne. Torn between duty and desire, he returns through a gray autumn landscape toward South Hill, where a sudden flash of scarlet by Daphne's boat-house suggests that his troubled heart is nearing another unsettling turn. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.
