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The Grave and the Gay is a historical romance based on the 17th-century English folk ballad, "Matty Groves." The story centers on the handsome, charismatic rogue Matty Musgrave, who tends the horses of his overly appreciative master, Lord Barnard, in Lancashire County, England. Matty also seizes the imagination of the barren and sexually frustrated Lady Barnard and the strong and alluring wash woman Alexandra, while Darnell, the loyal yet ambitious house servant, is jealous of his rival's appeal to both Barnards and Alexandra. Freedom, desire, loyalty, and responsibility are tested as the masters and the servants cross boundaries, leading to an explosive climax.