Harley Savage with her 'dangerous streak' and Douglas Cheesman with his jug handle ears and vertigo both arrive in the little backwater of Karakarook. She is setting up the heritage museum while he is there to pull down the Bent Bridge, a local landmark. The Idea of Perfection tells the story of how these extraordinary characters, battered by past loves and scarred by life, find each other. Grenville, an Australian writer, vividly describes life in this rural New South Wales backwater. Her skilful touch effectively weaves the central narrative with a subplot that is both funny and tragic. The characters are well-drawn and empathetic, and the undercurrent themes of suppressed passion and sorrow engage the reader. This is a superb novel.