Roses and Thorns
- Margaret travels home with her father after Edith's wedding. Margaret's mother didn't come to the wedding because she couldn't find a dress she liked. How shallow.
- Margaret's dad is a pastor.
- Unlike her sister Mrs. Shaw, Mrs. Hale married for love when she married Mr. Hale. The problem is that a big part of her still wishes she'd married for money, since she's a lady who likes to have nice things. The grass is always greener, eh?
- Glancing over at her father in the carriage, Margaret sees that there's something on his mind.
- She guesses that the marriage has caused him to think about his son Frederick, who is lost to the family for some reason. At this point, we're left to assume that Frederick died in the navy.
- Margaret looks forward to returning home to Helstone, where she likes to take long walks in nature and to help the village's poor residents.
- Margaret, though, is not prepared for just how bitter her mother has become over the years about the fact that she's not wealthier.
- One of the things that bothers Mrs. Hale most about Helstone is that it doesn't offer Mr. Hale enough companionship, which is true. The guy has very few friends and spends all his time in his study reading.
- Mrs. Hale mentions living closer to a family called the Gormans, but Margaret doesn't like these people because they've made their money in business instead of a leading a dignified life like her father. She's pretty haughty when it comes to this stuff.
- Margaret goes out for a walk with her father and almost faints because she loves nature so much. Wowzers.
- Back at the house, Margaret learns from her father that her brother Frederick has written letters to them. So now we know he isn't dead. He just can't come back to England.
- Margaret suspects that her father has heard something about Frederick that he's been keeping from her mother.
- As the chapter draws to a close, the housemaid walks in on the Hales and announces that Mr. Henry Lennox has arrived. Funny. Margaret was just thinking about him.