To the North is a story of sisters-in-law Cecilia and Emmeline Summers who are devoted to each other, and have decided to live together. At the prime of her youth, Cecilia has endured much pain after the death of her husband Henry who died in a tragic accident a year after their wedding. Cecilia still suffers from the trauma which she conceals by attending numerous parties and making unnecessary trips out of the country. Emmeline, Henry’s younger sister, is quiet, elusive, and very independent.
Unlike her sister-in-law, Emmeline is devoted to her career, she co-owns a travel agency that sends its clients to unknown destinations where uncertainty is part of the package. On the other hand, Cecilia hates working, she lives off her loyalties and spends most of her days drifting from her designers to dinner parties and luncheons-she especially enjoys spending time with her rich aunt, Georgina Walters. Cecilia and Emmeline are different in many ways but love each other nonetheless-they enjoy spending lazy afternoons together chatting and hosting dinners with their friends. The two young women are distinct in so many ways but share an elusive trait, their beauty, which makes them desirable but will prove to be their undoing.
Their peaceful co-existence is abruptly interrupted when a dashing young man, Markie Linkwater steps into their lives. On her way back from Italy, Cecilia meets Markie on a train and the two have a pleasant conversation. Markie is intrigued by the beautiful woman sitting across from and suggests they meet in London. Cecilia, however, is not interested at least not enough to consider him as a romantic partner. She is still processing her feelings after her husband’s death. Days after she gets home, Cecilia invites Markie over for dinner. Markie meets Emmeline and is immediately charmed, the attraction is mutual.
Unaware of the extent of the relationship between Emmeline and Markie, Cecilia fails to guide her sister-in-law who had fallen madly in love with a man she considers untrustworthy. Unlike Cecilia, Emmeline has never been in love, she is usually indifferent to romance and pours her life into her work. Now she is experiencing love for the first time and is completely defenseless against Markie’s charms. She pours her heart out for a man she barely knows and is conceived she is nothing without him. As both women dance the night away into different endings the tension builds when the author slowly reveals the psychotic nature of Markie Linkwater.
