The Triflers

Monte Covington has spent ten years amusing himself in Europe. The money never runs out, the parties never stop, and yet here he is approaching thirty and feeling something he cannot name: an emptiness that no new city or new diversion has ever filled. Then comes an unexpected encounter in Paris with Marjory Stockton, a woman who has just buried her aunt after a decade of watchful obedience and is now, for the first time in her life, entirely free. She has plans, opinions, and a sharp tongue. He has charm, wealth, and no idea what he wants. What begins as flirtation becomes something more dangerous: a conversation between two people who have been playing at life and have just realized they haven't been paying attention to what matters. Bartlett writes with light, assured wit about the peculiar loneliness of the wealthy and the even more peculiar courage it takes to want something real. This is a romantic comedy of manners at its finest: polished, knowing, and surprisingly tender beneath the social satire.