Pembroke

"Pembroke: A Novel" by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman tells the story of a romance gone awry and the dramatic events that follow, which entertain the residents of the small town for years after. The novel begins with the breaking off of the engagement between Barney Thayer and Charlotte Barnard after Charlotte's father and Barney get into a heated political argument. Upon ending their engagement, Barney moves into the house that was intended to be the home of him and Charlotte after their wedding. Members of both Barney's family and Charlotte's family appeal to Barney to return to Charlotte and fix their engagement, but in his mind there is no alternative to the way things are.