The second in Henry Handel's trilogy, The Fortunes of Richard Mahoney. (From the book blurb) A study of disillusionment. Mahoney, having bought a medical practice on the south coast of England, discovers that his years in the colonies have alienated him from provincial English society. He returns to Australia and prosperity. A second visit to Europe, a 'Grand Tour', is cut short by the failure of his financial affairs, and Mahoney is called abruptly, and finally, to Australia. The trilogy is completed in Ultima Thule.