In Blott on the Landscape, the landscape is flawless until Sir Giles wants to build a highway smack through it. Sir Giles recruits to his side Hoskins, a corrupt local official; Lord Leakham, the environmental equivalent of a hanging judge; and Dundridge, a troublesome bureaucrat with an unhealthy passion for order. Against this powerful lobby are a mere handful of local residents led by his wife. Sharpe spells out in detail how the forces of virtue play an exceedingly dirty game when the issue is close to home.