A beautifully written novella about loss of innocence and the "burning secrets" of life and love. This is my first Stefan Zweig read and I am really impressed. Reading this novella started off a year long group read of Zweig works, and I eagerly anticipate the next books I will be reading. This book has everything I look for; great characters, a compelling plot, and above all, absolutely beautiful writing! ( )

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The title story of this collection is one of the best I have ever read. When a young German baron spies a beautiful (married) woman, while he is visiting a mountain resort, he finds that his best approach is via her young son. He quickly establishes a relationship with the son leading him closer to his mother, but the son begins to sense a change. The adults have a 'secret' that he must unravel for it is beginning to stand in the way of his relationship with the Baron. Full of the deep psychological insight you would expect from Stefan Zweig this story builds inexorably to its end. A compelling collection as a whole. ( )