The Debutante - Couverture rigide

Can the secrets of one woman's past change another woman's future?

A gifted artist, Cate has come to London from New York to escape her recent past. Working for her aunt's auction house, she is sent down to Devon to value the contents of Endsleigh House, the once gracious but now crumbling estate of a former socialite. There, hidden in the back of a dusty bookshelf, Cate discovers an old shoebox. Inside is a strange assortment of objects: an exquisite pair of dancing shoes circa 1930; a diamond brooch; a photograph of a young sailor; a dance card; and a pearl and emerald Tiffanys bracelet.

Intrigued by her find, Cate sets out to solve the mystery of the box, becoming immersed in the story of its owner, Baby Blythe. Bright, beautiful, and reckless, Baby was the most famous debutante of her generation . . . and the most dangerous. As the clues begin to reveal a shocking tale of destructive, addictive love, Cate finds herself being drawn deeper into Baby's tragic life story—a story that will force Cate to face some dark truths about her own.

Cate, an exile from New York, is sent to help value the contents of a once-grand Georgian house on the southwest coast of England. Cataloguing its contents with Jack -- a man with his own dark past -- she comes across a hidden shoebox containing an exquisite pair of dancing shoes, along with a mysterious collection of objects from the 1930s: a photograph, a dance card and a Tiffany bracelet.

Returning to London rather than face the questions lingering in her own life, Cate immerses herself in piecing together the clues contained in the box. In doing so, she uncovers the story of Irene Blythe and her sister Diana, known as "Baby" -- two of the most famous debutantes of their generation.

The tale that unfolds is one of addictive love, and it leads Cate to address secrets of her own. Can the dark events of Baby Blythe’s past change Cate's own ability to live and love again?