New York City, 1899. High societies, ball gowns and strict manners. This book ecompases the world of wealthy, well-to-do families and the inferiors who live in their shadows.
Elizabeth Holand, of the Holands, is one of these wealthy people. She is the most proper and well raised 17 year old that you would of ever met. This girl is also a fatherless daughter. The one thing that the Holland family didn't know however, was that the father of the Hollands had a huge debt before he died. Mrs. Holland relayed the news to her two daughters, Elizabeth and Diana, but what she really wanted to tell them is that Elizabeth is the only one who can save their family. If she marries rich, then they will be fine.
Another wealthy man, Henry Schoonmaker also has a problem. His father is making him go and marry Elizabeth because he wantes his son to have a respectable wife and because he is running for office. Elizabeth has to accept the offer, even though she hates Henry; Henry is secretly in love with Diana(Elizabeth's sister) and Elizabeth is secretly in love with her coachman, which is very forbidden. Will Elizabeth do what's best for her family? Will Diana steel Henry away from her sister? Will Elizabeth run away with her coachman? Who really knows in this society.
So far I am head over heels in love with this book. I love the time period it takes place in. I wish that I could live in this period; I've always wanted to go to a ball. It is also ver interesting how some of the rich people act. There is one part in the book where a weathly girl named Penelope thanks her new maid and then curses to herself because she knew she shouldn't of gave her too much praise. Isn't it shocking how rude she was? I guess back then there were two types of people, the wealthy and the poor, and when the rich talked to the poor, which wasn't often, the rich had to put them in their place; how sad.
