A Perfect Revenge

"Romeo and Juliet" meets the BBC comedy "To the Manor Born" in London writer Dilke's ("The Inheritance") novel of class, money and feuding in contemporary England. The Delanceys, an aristocratic family who have occupied the former Cistercian Abbey ever since Henry VIII gave it to them in the 16th century, have been forced to sell it to the highest bidder - their former gardener's family, the Traffords. The Delanceys still live on the estate - in the Lodge where their ancient possessions look shabby and cramped and they can see their erstwhile servants lording it over them daily. Stanley Trafford, the last gardener, evicted and condemned to poverty by his former friend, Edmund Delancey, after stellar service in WWII, has never been able or willing to explain the source of the rift, but for him revenge is sweet. His son, the self-made real-estate mogul, Mark, is less sure, and his wife misses her suburban friends and feels isolated and snubbed among the country gentry. She busies herself updating the cold and cavernous Abbey, scandalizing the Delanceys as she provides the light and comfort only money (and a lack of education) can buy. Meanwhile young Laura Delancey returns home from a trip and is immediately attracted to a handsome young man. He's a Trafford, of course, and while they both lie about their identities it can't be long before they are exposed. Can love conquer the family feud? Dilke keeps her touch light and witty while exploring the rigid role of class in pre WWII Britain and its less rigid but still strong influence today. The novel proceeds pretty much as expected for a bit too long, stretching the plot thin before coming finally and rather abruptly to a tidy end. But Dilke portrays a vivid picture of changing British society and the history embedded in its bones while delivering an entertaining depiction of people's capacity for social cruelty and wasteful vindictiveness.

After spending six months in India, Laura Delancey comes home to England to find a different world than the one she left. During her absence her family lost the ancestral home the Cistercian Abbey they lived in for centuries to the Traffords. Just before WWII, Stanley Trafford was a gardener working for his childhood friend Edmund Delancey. Both men were happily married and their wives Hester and Effie became friends who depended on each other when their husbands went off to fight for England. However, something happened in 1946 leading to the end of their friendship, Stanley's job and his eviction from the estate. Four decades later, his self made millionaire grandson Mark wants revenge against the financially strapped Delanceys starting with the Abbey. However, he is attracted to Laura though he rationalizes she is part of his plan. Soon Mark and Laura want to know what happened in 1946 that caused the schism; only those still living refuse to tell. This is an interesting look at English society at a time of change when the historical class system is dying with the advent of nouvelle riche. The story line is at its best when is focuses on how three generations adapt to changing fortunes. The ending is to perfect while the secret that the older generation hides is obvious to the reader. Still fans will enjoy Annabel Dilke's fine character study of the changing English social order. Harriet Klausner