In the old New York of the 1850s, a few families such as the Ralstons ruled in simplicity and affluence. Delia Ralston has made the proper marriage; her cousin Charlotte Lovell, about to marry, confesses that the little foundling she cares for is her own child. The bargain the two women strike shapes both their lives, and Tina’s, for years to come.
One of Wharton’s finest novellas, from the Old New York sequence, a masterpiece of quiet cruelty and love. Download the free EPUB.