Good Behaviour
CBC Books | Posted: July 23, 2018 4:02 PM | Last Updated: July 23, 2018
Molly Keane
Behind the gates of Temple Alice, the aristocratic Anglo-Irish St Charles family sinks into a state of decaying grace. To Aroon St Charles, large and unlovely daughter of the house, the fierce forces of sex, money, jealousy and love seem locked out by the ritual patterns of good behaviour. But crumbling codes of conduct cannot hope to save the members of the St Charles family from their own unruly and inadmissible desires. (From Virago)
From the book
Rose smelt the air, considering what she smelt; a miasma of unspoken criticism and disparagement fogged the distance between us. I knew she ached to censure my cooking, but through the years I have subdued her. These wide shoulders and swinging hips were once parts of a winged quality she had — a quality reduced nd corrected now, I am glad to say.
'I wonder are you wise, Miss Aroon, to give her the rabbit?'
'And why not?' I can use the tone of voice which keeps people in their places and usually silences any interference from Rose. Not this time.
From Good Behaviour by Molly Keane ©1981. Published by Virago.