Against the backcloth of the great English country house of Longwarden - thetender passionate story of four women unfolds. Jane, American heiress, andnew wife of the ninth Earl of Carlyon... For her a love match, for him amarriage of convenience. Sarah, Only nineteen, and waiting for the man sheloves to return home from a long absence in the Spanish Foreign Legion. Pen,the Widowed eighth Countess, who falls in love for the very first time.Allegra, Pen's unconventional daughter, off to smart-set New York with abestselling biography to promote.From New England to Park Lane, fromManhatten to Barbados and home to Longwarden, four women live out 12 crucialmonths in a sweeping saga filled with love interwoven with violence andgrief.