In what may be his finest novel since

The Rector of Justin, Louis Auchincloss

offers his richest portrait yet of the man-

ners and mores of the Establishment

world he knows so well.

The lady of situations is Natica

Chauncey, the daughter of a ruined fi-

nancier who is forced to rely on a kindly

matron for her glancing acquaintance

with the aristocracy of Long Island. But

Natica is too clear-sighted to pretend that

such a life, as much as it dazzles her,

would satisfy her intellect. Coming of

age at a time when anything more than

a modest show of ambition does not be-

come a lady, she must seek her own for-

tune in the fortunes of others. And so,

with little more than her wits and deter-

mination, she makes her way through

the social shoals of New England prep

schools, Hudson Valley estates, and New

York drawing rooms.

Natica sees herself as a Bronte sister

"without the moors and without the ge-

nius"; her doting Aunt Ruth, a woman

of less imagination but considerably more

compassion, would contend merely that

she has "an attractive personality and a .

first-class mind." But Natica has one

thing more: a gift for finding opportu-

nity in improbable situations, even at the risk of scandal.