 Merry is 'second generation Tremaynes', Juliet travels 12,000 miles to attend the school her grandfather helped found, Leith thinks she is looking for a particular friend but discovers instead the value of belonging to a community.For Mallory the School or more specifically in several books, the House, represents a place where one can belong.Clare Mallory was born in Invercargill, New Zealand in 1913.