Good Companions Part II

The book follows the Good Companions around England, moving from town to town. Susie Dean the young singer and actress is clever and ambitious and determined to get onto the London stage. Inigo falls in love with her and writes songs for her. Other members of the party are not so attached to the rambling life and one of them marries a Gentleman friend and leaves the show. Miss Trant worries that there are squabbles at times, and that the show isn't making any real money. Jess keeps in touch with his family and goes home to see his wife, but finds she is not in good health but she wont talk to him about it. His son who is aspiring to a good job as a gentleman's hairdresser is never friendly with him -so he leaves, but goes back a couple of months later. He finds that his wife is in hospital, having refused to see a doctor till it was too late and she dies after he comes back. Miss Trant finds that she comes up against a middle aged businessman who has a few cinemas, and he is annoyed that the Concert party lure people away form his films and his business is falling off. He pays some roughs to catcall and boo, and to start a fight in the theatre, and in the resultant riot, Miss Trant is injured. She ends up in hospital with a broken arm and to her amazement, meets Hugh, a young Scottish doctor whom she met some years earlier while she was on a holiday with her father. She and Hugh fall in love and get engaged.