December Love
1922
In the autumn of her fame, Lady Adela Sellingworth has vanished from the bright theatres of London society. Alick Craven, a diplomatic man with idle curiosity, hears whispers of her retreat and the mystery that accompanies it: her priceless jewels were stolen, yet she seemed indifferent to their loss. What compels a woman who once commanded every room she entered to withdraw into quiet exile? Robert Hichens constructs a delicate psychological portrait of beauty in decline, exploring the terror of being forgotten and the strange freedom in letting go. Through Alick's growing fascination, we enter the drawing rooms of 1920s England where the currency of looks still determines a woman's worth, and watch a queen abdicate her throne without explanation. This is a novel about the cost of having been beautiful, and the ambiguous peace that follows the final curtain.
