A complex masterpiece of observation. English village life in war-time Britain is brought to life.

Timothy Casson, a bachelor writer, is forced to return from a contented life in Venice to an English village. Taking a house by the river where he can pursue his passion for rowing, he has to do battle with the locals to overcome his isolation and feelings of incompleteness. This most complex of Hartley's novels examines the multiple layers of Casson's relationships with servants, local society and friends.

"'English village life is made vivid and recognisable to us by countless delicate strokes of observation'" - Lord David Cecil

"'A work of the greatest brilliance and of a memorable humanistic cast'" - Manchester Guardian

"Hartley's hilarious (with dark moments) page-turner" - Daily Mail