51 - The Recital

It dawns on the good people of Gwair-on-Wye that, although Carmel Weinz is an exceedingly good writer, she is not an exceedingly good person. An evening misspent with the venerable Oud Raminides does little for her reputation, and leaves the vulnerable old scholar distraught and tearing out what remains of his white locks. Poor Clarissa Thorogood is driven to distraction by Carmel’s attempts to stir up trouble between Gwendolyn and Leppo. Despite, or perhaps because of this, ‘Cacoethes Scribendi!’ the live evening performance of her anarcho-modernist poetry is very well attended, tickets are almost sold out, and the crowds are stretching out along the high road struggling to get in.