Desperate for work, Mary O'Donnelly accepts a position as housekeeper for an enigmatic elderly lady. Gradually, Mary realizes her ladyship's house holds an unusual and fascinating power over its owner and the small circle of friends who attend her regular dinner parties. Through observation, Mary discovers the truth behind the phenomenon, but the secret power is threatened by an accident, and Mary sets out to restore her ladyship's unusual world. Beginning in the London of 1910, the novel explores the uncertainty of a post-Victorian Britain seeking new directions, yet overshadowed by the political and social turmoil that lead to World War I The book employs Well's Law (named after H.G.Wells): "a science fiction story should contain only a single extraordinary assumption. As soon as the magic trick has been done the whole business of the fantasy writer is to keep everything else human and real."
