In this richly layered debut novel, Cate Campbell introduces the wealthy Benedict family and takes us behind the grand doors of their mansion, Benedict Hall. There, family and servants alike must face the challenges wrought by World War I--and the dawn of a new age brimming with scandal, intrigue, and social change. Seattle in 1920 is a city in flux. Horse-drawn carriages share the cobblestone streets with newfangled motor cars. Modern girls bob their hair and show their ankles, cafés defy Prohibition by serving dainty teacups of whisky to returning vets--and the wartime boom is giving way to a depression. Even within the Benedicts' majestic Queen Anne home, life is changing--above and below stairs. Margot, the Benedicts' free-spirited daughter, struggles to succeed as a physician despite gender bias--and personal turmoil. The household staff, especially longtime butler Abraham Blake, have always tried to protect Margot from her brother Preston's cruel streak. Yet war has altered Preston too--not for the better. And when a chance encounter brings a fellow army officer into the Benedict fold, Preston's ruthlessness is triggered to new heights. An engineer at the fledgling Boeing company, Frank Parrish has been wounded body and soul, and in Margot, he senses a kindred spirit. But their burgeoning friendship and Preston's growing wickedness will have explosive repercussions for everyone at Benedict Hall--rich and poor, black and white--as Margot dares to follow her own path, no matter the consequences.

I told Tamsin the synopsis of my stories was always going to be a bit of a problem. If I wanted to publish my writings, my blog is not a novel but a collection of short stories. My stories have no real beginning, no middle, no end and no protagonist. So what's the synopsis going to be about? Phaedra, that's Phaedra Gascoigne, butted in and said "what about Dakota Pugsley from the fourth? She's a trouble maker and so is Madeline Brown. There is your pair of protagonists straight away". Tamsin pointed out "there is the love aspect Bridgette; like Nathan, the leader of the folk group 'The Sheriff's Men'. He's in love with that girl from the St Joan of Arc Roman Catholic School in Rickmansworth." "Oh, then there was 'A Love Made in Heaven' the story within a story. Remember that one Bridgette where Graham gets killed but he gets to meet his Miss Angel in heaven?" Candice said "well just say you are writing about the day to day events, the trials and tribulations of young girls and stuff at Denham Hall and leave it at that".

The charming city of Campbell sits amid bustling urban neighbors in California's "Silicon Valley." For many years known as the "Orchard City," Campbell is still very much a small town clinging fiercely to its identity. Benjamin Campbell founded a hay and grain farm on what is now downtown Campbell in 1851. Shrewdly selling off one of his acres for $5 for a railroad depot, Campbell soon subdivided his farm. The resulting town evolved into a rail center for shipping fruit across the continent and around the globe. Campbell Fruit Growers' Union, a large co-operative, sent apricots and prunes to dry yards that were at one time the largest in the world, and canneries like the J.C. Ainsley Packing Company and Geo. E. Hyde & Company became local giants.

"Explores the architectural and cultural history of Princeton University from 1750 to the present. Includes 150 historical illustrations"--Provided by publisher.