Charity Royall, a young woman stifled by her isolated life in rural Massachusetts, longs for freedom from her hard-drinking adoptive father. When a visiting city architect offers a chance at escape, Charity enters into an intense affair that challenges the restrictive social norms of her time, leading her to question if it truly brings liberation or another form of entrapment.

Why You Should Read?

• Explores themes of forbidden passion, societal expectations, and personal freedom.
• Offers a poignant portrayal of a young woman's struggle for autonomy in early 20th-century America.
• A compelling classic from Edith Wharton, known for its unflinching social commentary.
• Set against the evocative backdrop of a lush summer in rural New England.