The Flying Mercury

The novel opens on a remote Long Island road at dusk, where Emily Ffrench finds herself lost in more ways than one. Traveling with her aimless cousin Dick, she encounters David Lestrange, a racing driver whose mysterious connection to the Ffrench legacy remains tantalizingly unclear. His quiet confidence in that first meeting unsettles something in her, and in the family expectations that have shaped her life. Uncle Ethan demands Emily marry someone worthy of the family name, but David's dangerous world of early automobile racing represents everything proper society forbids. As romantic tension builds between Emily and the enigmatic driver, underlying tensions of class, ambition, and familial obligation begin to surface. Dick's aimless pursuit of purpose mirrors Emily's own uncertain future, while David's uncertain connection to their family history raises questions about identity and belonging that resonate far beyond the race track. Set against the thrilling backdrop of early twentieth-century auto racing, this is a novel about the roads we choose and the ones charted for us.