From the author of The Frozen Lake comes a enthralling novel of love, betrayal and idealism, as three very different young women go up to Oxford in the years leading up to World War Two. Vee -- the clergyman's daughter. Boyish, alluring, she plans to use her time at Oxford to put right everything that went wrong in her loveless childhood. Her friendship with Alfred introduces her to politics and the subversive attractions of secret societies; it will lead to her career as a secret agent, but at what cost to old loyalties and her true feelings? Claudia, radiant, intense, aristocratic, is equally drawn to the secret society and one member in particular; his dazzling influence will see her travel to Berlin and come under the spell of fascism as war looms. And Lally, glamorous daughter of an Irish-American senator, is sceptical of the society and the arguments from both sides; she seeks conformity and comfort, but looks for it in all the wrong places. Her disastrous choice will bring her into Vee's new life, with all its dangers and betrayals. As the world becomes embroiled in the events of war, what price personal values, losses and loves?