A modern retelling of The Golden Bowl by Henry James for fans of Sally Rooney and Danielle Steel. Enter the privileged Upper East Side homes where life is easy, but no one can truly be at ease. Where expenses are trivial, and the status quo is not to be disturbed by the truth. Where the loyalties of the Woodford family and their friends are repeatedly tested. Frederico, the holder of a meaningless Italian royal title and an equally meaningless job, is ready to dedicate himself entirely to his new wife. Emily, the willfully ignorant only child of a wealthy widower, could only be happier if her father found someone to marry too. Henry, still mourning his beloved wife, is devoted to his daughter and intent on plans to turn the old family estate into a museum to revive a failing town. Christina, Emily’s gorgeous, enigmatic childhood friend, is nursing a secret wound from a past lover. And Jean, the curator knows everything, but wishes she didn’t. When these characters come together, everyone’s heart is at risk. In this compelling page-turner told from alternating perspectives, the Woodfords learn what and who they really cannot live without.

DINITIA SMITH is the author of four previous novels, most recently The Honeymoon (Other Press), and her short stories have been published in numerous magazines. For 11 years, she was a reporter at the New York Times where she wrote on literary topics and intellectual trends. She has won many awards for her writing, including fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ingram Merrill Foundation, the MacDowell Colony and the Bread Loaf Writers Conference. She is also an Emmy Award-winning film maker.  Her film, Passing Quietly Through, was chosen for the New York Film Festival, and shown at the Whitney Museum and the Museum of Modern Art.

Brooke Allen is a writer and critic who has contributed to numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times Book Review, The New Criterion, The Hudson Review, The Nation, and Commentary. She is the author of several books, including Moral Minority: Our Skeptical Founding Fathers and two collections of literary criticism. She taught Literature at Bennington College and continues to teach in the Bennington Prison Education Initiative.

The Prince With Author Dinitia Smith in Conversation With Brooke Allen