The garden of DELIGHTS

THE STORY SO FAR: It’s 1910 and Effie, a housemaid on a Scottish country estate, has spent the summer forging a friendship with Misuki, a Japanese girl. Misuki and her mother were invited to Scotland as guests of Miss Constance, the laird’s daughter. Miss Constance has been travelling the world, but has returned as her father’s health is poor. With the help of the Japanese women, who are skilled horticulturalists, she plans to create a Japanese garden. Effie has a passion for flowers, and has been spending time alongside Misuki cultivating plants for the new garden. But then Effie learns Misuki will soon return to Japan. And Effie is not the only one who will be sad to see her go. Effie’s brother, Hamish, has fallen for Misuki, and she for him. Effie is shocked when Mrs Cochrane, the housekeeper, explains that Misuki’s marriage has been arranged – and Misuki is opposed to the match.

Effie pulled on her wellies and stood up, breathing in lungfuls of fresh air and closing her eyes to bask in the light of a stunning late-summer morning. The sun, creeping up over the horizon to the east of her, was already burning off the haze that clung to the trees and drifted over the fields.

With the grand opening of the Japanese garden only a few weeks away, Effie was thrilled she had been temporarily excused from her