Scarlet Feather

"Scarlet Feather" is a 2000 novel by Maeve Binchy.

One of the novel's main characters is Cathy Scarlet, who has married Neil Mitchell, son of the wealthy household where her mother Lizzie used to scrub floors. We see that Neil's mother Peggy was totally against the marriage and makes life hard for Cathy. Cathy and her college friend, Tom Feather, set up a catering business called Scarlet Feather, the fortunes of which are traced throughout the book. Tom is in a relationship with beautiful Marcella, who dreams of being a model, but Marcella's ambitions come between the couple and there is growing distance too between Cathy and Niall.

Younger characters are Neil's twin nephew and niece Simon and Maud who are in need of care, as their mother is an alcoholic and their father has disappeared. Their older brother Walter is not willing to take responsibility for them, and they end up spending a lot of time with Cathy's parents, Lizzie and Muttie, in a far less affluent part of town.

The novel traces the growth of the catering company which gives it its name and the relationships of the main characters, as well as those of more minor characters such as Shona and James. Readers of Binchy's other novel, Quentins, will recognise Brenda Brennan and her restaurant. Scarlet Feather explores familiar themes of family strife and responsibility, relationships and fledgling business ventures. Binchy invites us into her characters' lives and draws them with humour and warmth.