Falconer's Lure Summary

Warning: this chapter-by-chapter summary is a "spoiler". Don't read on unless you want to know what happens when!

Chapters

Jael in the Morning
Grand Stoop
"No One Ever Tells us Anything"
Colebridge Market
Jael is Entered and Peter Gate-crashes
The Day it Rained
Jael in the Evening
Lawrie's Sort of Day
Lost Hawk
High Diving
The Jump-off

Summary

Summary text copyright Pat Bland, 1999.

Chapter 1: Jael in the Morning

All the Marlow family, except for Giles, are gathered at Trennels Old Farm for the 1948 Summer holidays. Trennels now belongs to Cousin Jonathan, following the death of Great-Uncle Lawrence. On an early morning walk, Nicola discovers the goshawk Jael caught in a tree by her jesses, and thus re-encounters the neighbouring boy, Patrick Merrick, after many years as they rescue Jael together. Patrick takes Nicola home where he introduces her to the hawks Regina and The Sprog and to much falconry lore. He asks Nicola for her help in looking after the hawks for the rest of the holidays. She also learns that Patrick has been at home from school for two years after falling from a cliff. They arrange to meet later the same day to watch Cousin Jonathan, a pilot, testing a plane.

Chapter 2: Grand Stoop

At breakfast that day, Cousin Jonathan explains much falconry lore to the Marlows and Ginty, who is very much under the spell of a superficial, over-dramatic school friend, Unity Logan, rushes from the table calling hawking "hateful". Nicola hurts Peter's feelings by making it clear that his help is not needed or wanted in looking after the hawks because originally Patrick had been his special friend. Patrick, Nicola and The Sprog spend the afternoon on the moors where Nicola's fear of horses is revealed. They see Jonathan's plane take a nosedive and later learn that there has been a crash and Jonathan has been killed.

Chapter 3: "No One Ever Tells us Anything"

One week later Nicola decides to go and say goodbye to Patrick as she assumes it is nearly time for the Marlows to go back to London. Patrick surprises Nicola with the news that Trennels is entailed and thus belongs to Captain Marlow. Nicola rushes off to check this information with her father who confirms it as well as making clear that somehow the family are going to farm the heavily in debt property. Nicola is grieved at the loss of her home in London, which is contrasted with Ginty's immediate delight and acceptance of the new arrangements. In the afternoon Patrick and Nicola go hawking on horseback with Regina. Nicola agrees to try and take Regina to school during term time.

Chapter 4: Colebridge Market

Rowan and Nicole go into Colebridge market to get their hair cut. At the train station they meet the Vicar who reveals that Marlows have lived at Trennels since at least the 10th Century. Rowan surprises Nicola by saying how much she would prefer to live in London than the country and they discuss the fact that their father is going to have to leave the Navy to run the farm. Nicola has he hair cut very short indeed to Rowan's consternation. She also buys a very old book on hawking on a stall. Rowan suggests an outhouse at school where Regina might be housed. Lawrie becomes very upset about Nicola and her hair because, as a result, they no longer look like twins and cuts her own hair to match, with disastrous results.

Chapter 5: Jael is Entered and Peter Gate-crashes

Nicola and Patrick go hawking with Jael and Nicola injures her shoulder. Patrick takes her home and gives her a book on Nelson and, in return, she promises him the old book on falconry that she bought at Colebridge Market. Nicola meets Mrs. Merrick who tells her that the Merricks are buying the Marlow's London house. Meanwhile, Peter and Lawrie go swimming to practice diving in preparation for the Colebridge Festival, with prizes for various events. On the way home Peter shoots a rabbit which he decides to give to Patrick for the hawks and he and Lawrie gatecrash into the Merrick's walled garden and disturb the hawks. Patrick invites Peter to bring his camera to photograph the peregines' nest on the cliffs. Peter agrees and Nicola is anxious because of Peter's fear of heights but does not say anything so as not to embarrass him.

Chapter 6: The Day it Rained

Nicola, Patrick and Jael go for an early morning walk on the moors and Jael chases and catches a hare. In the afternoon it rains and the Marlows fill in the forms for various events at the Colebridge Festival including Recitation (Lawrie) and Singing (Nicola). Nicola particularly wants to win money to pay for Regina's keep back at school as Miss Keith has agreed to arrangement for a term. Rowan suggests that she should leave school and run Trennels with Mr. Tranter's help.

Chapter 7: Jael in the Evening

Patrick, Nicola and Peter climb the rock face to photograph the falcon's nest which is very near the place where Patrick previously fell. Eventually Peter panics and is unable to speak or move and Nicola goes on a dangerous climb alone to get the coastguard. Whilst they wait Patrick insults Peter by calling him a lily livered loon". Next day Mr. Merrick tells Nicola that he believes the falconry book that she gave Patrick may be valuable and that he cannot allow Patrick to keep it and he later goes to London to sell it on Nicola's behalf. Rowan tells Nicola that their father has agreed to her running the farm. Later that day, Peter is shooting rabbits on the moor and shoots Jael by mistake. Patrick and Peter have a row.

Chapter 8: Lawrie's Sort of Day

On the day of the Colebridge Festival, Lawrie is thrilled to discover that her adjudicator is going to be Ellen Holroyd, who has once run a well known Dramatic School. Nicola sings Fidele's Dirge and, in spite of being overcome with emotion because of Jael's death and having to start again, comes second in the singing competition. Lawrie's recitation goes horribly wrong when she unwittingly recites the rather coy "Foreign Lands" in excactly the same winsome tones as the competitor before her and is stopped by the angry Miss Holroyd. Lawrie is devastated but later in the day her determination reasserts itself and she waylays Miss Holroyd and recites de la Mare's "Tom's Angel" to her. Miss Holroyd is very impressed and gives Lawrie and Nicola a ride home in her car and arranges for Lawrie to come to London to meet other important theatrical people.

Chapter 9: Lost Hawk

Regina has become lost and Nicola and Patrick search for her on horseback. They find her on top of the church spire in a nearby village and decide to spend the night there with Patrick's cousin, the Vicar, and pick her up in the morning. The Vicar is away from home so they spend the night in a haystack. In the morning, before they are properly awake, Regina flies away to freedom.

Chapter 10: High Diving

Patrick and Nicola decide that Nicola will look after The Sprog for the rest of the holidays and take him back to school with her in term time. Later that day, the swimming events of the Festival are held and Peter wins the dinghy sailing race. Peter and Patrick, still at odds with each other, compete in the diving competition. Peter conquers his fear and win the competition with "Dead Man's Drop". Patrick and Peter make up their differences.

Chapter 11: The Jump-off

On the day of the Colebridge Festival Gymkhana, Nicola has entered, with some trepidation, to try and win money to look after The Sprog back at school. Another competitor, Wendy Reynolds (the girl whom Lawrie unwittingly imitated at the Recitation), mistakes Nicola for Lawrie and bumps and crowds her and eventually causes her to have a bad fall, and so she wins nothing. Later Rowan and Patrick compete against each other and Rowan promises to give Nicola half her prize money. However, Rowan loses too, and Nicola is in great distress because this means that she will not be able to keep The Sprog. However, Mr. Merrick tells Nicola that he has sold her old book on hawking for a large sum of money, and so all ends happily.