I thought I had read this once before, but as I just finished it, it has a totally different slant than what I thought it was. Ms. Harris is practicing "Love the child, hate the actions." Just as a wise parent, she philosophises about the phenomenon of Youth, with the confidence of knowing that it will come out all right in the end. She is indulgent in her descriptions of Anne's activities, low as they get, because she is confident that time and intelligence, and the calming hand of a true man, will allow maturity and happiness to happen.
How discreet to only meet the hero once and in a glancing way, until the denoument. This is less a romance than a commentary on the excesses of the Youth of her day. ( )