Egg Collecting for Beginners: A Francis Dicken Novel

The lives of Sarah Dicken and her son Francis are thrown into turmoil following the death of Mattew Dicken, husband and father. Sarah had been in a loveless marriage but made the best of it for the sake of Francis. After the death of her husband, she resolves never to sell herself short again. A strong woman, Sarah sets out to form a relationship with wealthy George Clennell. The death of his long-time housekeeper and surrogate mother, Molly Tredant, allows him to bring Sarah and her son to his home to take the place of Molly.
George has a wife and three children, but Eleanor, his wife, suffers from deep post-natal depression, only careing for her eldest child, James. When George insists that he will send James to boarding school, she threatens to make her husband pay. George takes James to school and whilst absent; she takes her violent revenge.
Francis, who can see only how he is affected by the tragedy, becomes a loner spending much of his time in the fields and woods, swimming in the stream that passes through the estate. Francis finishes school at 13, and events come to a head when James is home from holiday.