Winter Solstice

Elfrida Phipps, a retired actress in her early sixties, has settled into a tiny railway cottage in the Hampshire village of Dibton after the death of her partner, Jimbo, who had Parkinson's disease. She lives on her old age pension and a small income from stitching cushions, with a mongrel dog named Horace for company. At the village church, she meets Oscar Blundell, a retired church organist and former choirmaster, and through him his wife, Gloria, who owns the largest house in the village. Oscar and Gloria's 12-year-old daughter, Francesca, becomes especially close to Elfrida, who grows fond of the family while carefully maintaining her independence.

After a month in Cornwall with her cousin Jeffrey Sutton and his family, Elfrida returns to Dibton in November and learns that Gloria and Francesca were killed in a car crash when a lorry struck their car at a roundabout on a rainy night. At the Grange, she finds Oscar's elderly uncle, Hector McLennan, who explains that Gloria's adult sons from a previous marriage intend to sell the house and have suggested Oscar move into a retirement home. Hector proposes instead that Oscar go to the Estate House in the small Scottish town of Creagan, a property Oscar co-owns with his cousin Hughie McLennan, inherited from their grandmother. Oscar asks Elfrida to accompany him, and she agrees without hesitation.

In a parallel storyline, Sam Howard, a 38-year-old wool-broker from Yorkshire, returns to London after six years in New York. His wife, Deborah, has recently left him for another man. Sam's chairman assigns him to revive McTaggarts of Buckly, a historic woollen mill in Sutherland, Scotland, devastated by a flood. At a dinner party, Hughie McLennan, who now lives in Barbados, hears about Sam's posting, produces a key to the Estate House, and offers to sell it privately for 150,000 pounds.

Meanwhile, Carrie Sutton, Jeffrey's younger daughter, has returned to London from Austria, where she ended a devastating three-year love affair with Andreas, a married German banker who chose his family over her. Carrie discovers a family crisis: Her elder sister, Nicola, plans to spend Christmas in Florida with her new American boyfriend, Randall Fischer, while Nicola's 14-year-old daughter, Lucy Wesley, refuses to go. Neither Lucy's grandmother Dodie nor her divorced father will take her. Carrie proposes to Lucy that they spend Christmas with Elfrida, tracks Elfrida to Scotland through Jeffrey, and secures an invitation. Oscar, despite his wish for no celebration, agrees to host them.

Oscar and Elfrida drive north and collect the Estate House key from Major Billicliffe, the former manager of the Corrydale estate. The house proves spacious and well-maintained, looked after by a local caretaker, Mrs. Snead. Oscar remains deeply withdrawn. On a long walk, he meets Peter Kennedy, the parish minister, and accepts an invitation to tea, but panics upon learning Peter is a clergyman and flees. Shamed by his rudeness, Oscar takes his first step back into the world by visiting Rose Miller, his grandmother's elderly former parlourmaid. On the way home, he finds Billicliffe ill in bed and drives him to the hospital, where Billicliffe asks Oscar to be his executor.

Oscar later visits Peter at the Manse, the minister's house, for a pivotal conversation. Peter tells him that when Francesca died, "God's was the first heart to break" (215), and counsels Oscar that what he needs is not theology but close friends. Peter gives Oscar a spare key to the church organ. Oscar leaves feeling stronger.

Carrie and Lucy fly to Inverness and arrive in Creagan, where Lucy is enchanted by the town. On a solo walk with Horace, Lucy is rescued from a Rottweiler attack by Rory Kennedy, Peter's 18-year-old son, who works as a greenkeeper during his gap year. Rory invites her to a traditional Scottish reel dance and becomes her closest friend. Heavy snow blocks the roads.

Sam, after a meeting with the Buckly workforce, diverts to Creagan and finds the Estate House occupied. Carrie opens the door, and they talk by the fire. When Sam contacts the AA, a roadside assistance service, and learns the roads are impassable, Carrie insists he stay. He becomes part of the household, helping with Christmas preparations.

At Sam's suggestion, Sir James Erskine-Earle, a local representative for the fine art dealers Boothby's, appraises a small painting Elfrida has long believed to be by the 19th-century Scottish painter David Wilkie. Jamie pronounces it a well-executed copy worth perhaps a thousand pounds. Elfrida is devastated, having counted on the painting as financial security. As Jamie leaves, however, he notices Elfrida's travelling clock, inherited from a seafaring godfather, on the mantelpiece and asks to take it for specialist evaluation.

On a trip to collect a Christmas tree from the Corrydale estate, the snowy landscape triggers Carrie's buried grief over Andreas. She breaks down, and Sam holds her. Later, over drinks at a pub, Sam proposes they give themselves time before pursuing a relationship, and Carrie agrees.

Oscar learns that Billicliffe has died and left him everything: his cottage, car, dog, and about 2,500 pounds. Elfrida suggests they sell Oscar's share of the Estate House to Sam and move to the cottage. Sam insists on a fair valuation, telling Oscar the house is worth far more than Hughie's asking price. Shortly after, Jamie telephones: The clock is a rare Silver Chronometer Tourbillon made around 1830, worth 70,000 to 80,000 pounds at auction, more than enough to fund a renovation.

Elfrida hosts a party at the Estate House. That evening, Nicola telephones from Florida to announce she has married Randall. Lucy, devastated and terrified of being forced to live in America, retreats to her room in tears. Rory delivers an impassioned speech urging everyone to let Lucy stay in Creagan with Elfrida and Oscar and attend the local school. His father Peter stands beside him and agrees.

Oscar goes to Lucy's room and proposes that she remain with him and Elfrida. When Lucy asks whether he truly wants her, Oscar replies, "More than anything" (475), explaining that he needs a young person about the place. They talk about Francesca, and Oscar, momentarily overcome, tells Lucy that what Francesca was truly good at was "Living" (476). They sit together until the emotion passes.

On Christmas Eve, the group inspects the cottage at Corrydale. Sam sketches a renovation plan within the clock's projected sale price. Alone afterward, Oscar tells Elfrida he wants to marry her, both to seal their commitment and to protect Lucy's guardianship from challenge. Elfrida accepts. That evening, as the household walks to the church for Midnight Service, they learn the organist has flu and only taped music is available. Inside, the tape cuts out. A moment later, the organ erupts with Beethoven's "Ode to Joy." Elfrida looks up and sees Oscar, spotlit at the organ, playing with all his heart, having used Peter Kennedy's key to let himself in. Reconciled with his music, with the church, and with the possibility of moving forward, Oscar has returned to where he belongs.