Centered on a country boarding house managed by a resourceful hostess and her obliging husband, the story traces the summer influx of city boarders and the domestic bustle that accompanies them. Relationships and romantic entanglements among guests and local families develop through misunderstandings, social pretensions, and a contested set of valuable jewels that generate suspicion and intrigue. A medical convalescence, a haunted-house episode, and a sudden death introduce moments of crisis that reveal character and prompt reconciliations. The second part widens the focus to additional relatives and suitors, concluding with funerary reckonings, restored ties, and settled domestic futures.