The Root of All Evil

The story unfolds in a compact English town where two rival groceries – Jeckie’s shop and the Grice emporium – vie for customers. The Grice family business dominates the center of town, while a gleaming refinery on the town’s edge signals wealth and industrial power. This setting creates a sharp social divide between poverty and prosperity, and frames the rapid rise and fall of fortunes.

💰 Greed

Jeckie’s ascent begins with a payout from a breach of promise and a relentless pursuit of money. She leverages wealth to reshape the town’s commerce, undercutting rivals and expanding beyond a simple grocer. The narrative shows how monetary ambition corrodes relationships and ethics, driving the plot toward a reckoning.

🏛️ Power and Class

Wealth creates a new social order in this town, lifting Jeckie into a grand life while isolating old friends and cementing alliances with dubious partners. The oil venture intensifies class dynamics, turning money into influence and demonstrating how quickly status can change the town’s hierarchy.

💔 Love and Loyalty

Joe Bartle remains a stable, unjudging presence even as Jeckie pursues wealth and risk. His quiet steadfastness contrasts with Jeckie’s volatile ambition, illustrating that genuine care can outlast fortune. By the end, Jeckie recognises that Joe’s loyalty was what she truly needed all along.

🔥 Consequences and Redemption

Scholes’s vengeful act ignites a catastrophic fire that destroys the oil operation, forcing a reckoning with the consequences of Jeckie’s ruthlessness. The blaze exposes the fragility of wealth and power, pushing Jeckie toward self-reflection. In the end, Joe’s forgiving, constant presence guides her toward a more humane understanding of success.