The Hillman

A stalled motorcar brings Louise into contact with a world far removed from her usual town life. While her maid and chauffeur worry about a broken magneto, she watches the dimly lit hills with pleasure. A remarkably tall young rider appears on the lonely road and offers shelter at the home he shares with his brother. The opening sets an unexpected meeting against a landscape of isolated fields, a distant sheepbell and gathering darkness.

Later, John follows Louise to London, drawn by his feelings for her and curious about the society she inhabits. Talk of a prince's supper party and an admired dancer introduces a social world whose pleasures trouble him. E. Phillips Oppenheim builds this novel around personal attraction, conflicting expectations and the distance between country life and fashionable company. Readers interested in relationships under social pressure will find direct declarations of feeling alongside conversations shaped by uncertainty and guarded judgments.