Retreating to a country cottage in a tranquil Devon village one summer, Mr Golightly hopes to regain the inspiration that saw him write an international best-seller many years ago. Much as he tries to shut himself away from the local community, he finds he becomes immersed in the lives of his neighbours and, through them, forced to contemplate his own attitude to love and the effect of his only son's terrible death. The gentle pace and charming description of this country idyll lull the reader into a pleasant escapism, but as the book unfolds we realise that there is much more to Mr Golightly. With his true identity revealed, the drama takes on another perspective, with much greater, far-reaching implications.