A modern retelling of the famous story of Hélöise and Abelard by an acclaimed Irish novelist. A Bit of a Scandal opens as Louise, a middle-aged Irish emigrant, returns to Dublin for Christmas after thirty years of living in New York City, where she works as an Art History professor. While waiting for her son to join her, Louise visits her friend, Felicity, whose home overlooks an old Cistercian monastery. The granite building reminds Louise of her youthful love affair with Peter, a Canadian monk, who, at the time, lived in the same monastery while studying theology. The couple, like their predecessors in medieval times, shared a passionate but impossible love.