I GO TO THE STYLES
We begin our journey through the eyes of Captain Hastings, who is introducing us to our first character, John Cavendish. Cavendish is 15 years older than Hastings, but Hastings fondly remembers his stays at John’s mother’s place in Essex — known as, The Styles.
Cavendish suggests that Hastings make a return to the Styles, as his mother (actually, stepmother) would love to see him. Hastings informs the reader of a little bit of background here, as he explains that the brothers were so young when their father remarried that they consider her as their real mother. It’s obvious already that this family is not normally structured.
It is here we get our first instance of possible motives for resentment, as Hastings says that all of their late father’s fortune was left to the stepmother, instead of his two sons. Nonetheless, she takes very good care of them. Interesting to note though, she has recently remarried after the death of their father.
Hastings proceeds to tell us the Tale of Two Sons: Lawerence and John.
Lawrence, the younger sibling, initially pursued a career in medicine but abandoned it, as he found no passion for the field. He now resides at home, occasionally attempting literary work, though with little success.
John had recently married and moved his wife to The Styles. He would like a larger allowance from his stepmother but has not received one. Furthermore, John doesn’t seem very fond of his stepmother’s new spouse, Albert.
He continues on, and we meet our third character, named Evie. An older woman not noted for her beauty but for her practical nature and sharp tongue. Apparently, Albert was introduced to Emily by a friend, and while she openly acknowledges their marriage, the rest of the household seems far less enthusiastic about it. According to John, the entire family was shocked to hear that their stepmother would be marrying Albert! The man is 20 years younger than her and is being accused of blatant “fortune-hunting” by John.
Three days later, Hastings is making his way to The Styles. Picking him up is none other than our old friend John Cavendish. John mentions Cynthia, a child of an old family friend who’s been with them for two years now, and works as a Voluntary Aid Detachment nurse at a dispensary in Red Cross Hospital, 7 miles away. Arriving there, they are greeted by Evie, who is busy working and is told to take a rest and join them.
We are then introduced to Mary Cavendish, the wife of Jack Hastings. Hastings takes a brief moment to romanticize his first sight of Mary. Shortly after, we meet Alfred, and it’s time for the juicy drama!
The conversation quickly steers towards crime and murder— how convenient. Mary Cavendish proclaims that she would immediately be able to tell who a murderer was. I have a feeling we will be putting that to the test. Mary uses the term “he” when talking about a murderer. She asserts that murder is typically perpetrated by men. Hastings counters that not all murders are violent, such as when someone kills another with poison.
Enter Cynthia Murdoch, a young and beautiful woman with the V. A. D. Her and Hastings share a nice, cute little moment together when Emily Inglethorp calls out to Cynthia to “jot some notes for her.” It’s apparent that she uses Cynthia for small tasks like this. This particular task has to do with some documents, and that’s all we’re told.
Hastings makes it to his room in the upstairs left wing of the building, overlooking the park below. Hastings notices Lawrence Cavendish’s approach across the lot. Hastings refrains from interfering and notes that he had a dream later that night of “the enigmatic” Mary Cavendish. Must be an extraordinary woman!
The next day, Hastings and Mary spend a day in the woods together, only to arrive back at The Styles to find John waiting. He tells them to come inside, and it’s apparent to Hastings that something is very wrong.
It appears as though Evelyn has given Emily a piece of her mind regarding her marriage and her husband’s intentions. Mrs. Howard has packed her bags and enters the room, explaining what she has just said to Mrs. Inglethorp. She intends to leave The Styles, but not before delivering a chilling warning to Hastings: Now that she is gone, he will soon see for himself exactly what she meant about the people in this house.
After the drama concludes, Hastings notices Mary leaving to meet a large, bearded man. We learn that his name is Dr. Bauerstein, and he’s here for a rest cure after being overworked lately. To make matters worse, we discover that Dr. Bauerstein is an expert in the field of poison. How convenient! Were we not just discussing such matters with this very woman?
John guides Hastings away, where he discusses that The Styles should be his, but because of the way The Styles is structured, everything went to Emily instead. He then seems to attempt to bum money from Hastings. At this moment, the absence of Evelyn Howard is truly felt by Hastings. As if her mere presence, created a shield of security around the family. It’s almost as if her absence has unleashed the worst impulses in everyone’s personalities. Hastings observes the immediate effect her departure had on John, who immediately resorted to begging him for money. The chapter concludes with Hastings expressing his ominous sense of impending doom.
End of Chapter 1