The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett

Eudora joins Rose, her parents, and Stanley on a trip to the seaside. She and Stanley accompany Rose on the carousel, much to the surprise of the ride operator and delight of the crowd, to whom Eudora gives a queen’s wave. Eudora has a moment with Rob, Rose’s father, who tells her that Rose was bullied in her last school and has had trouble making friends. Moving to London was in part an effort to give Rose a fresh start. He thanks Eudora for her kindness to Rose, and she is surprised to find out that she is so important in Rose’s life.

Back home, Eudora sees the date on her calendar where she wrote “freedom”—the day she can end her life at the clinic. She adds a question mark to the note. She also mentions to Petra that she went to the seaside when Petra calls to check in.

The narrative flashes back to Christmas of 1958. Eudora loved her job at the bank but was taken aback when Patrick Nicholson, a senior manager, asked her out. Feeling pressured by Sylvia and the other ladies who found Patrick handsome, she agreed to a date. Just as she was starting to think he might be someone to open up to, she overheard some other women at the dance hall describing her as an ice queen.