In 1815, Napoleon’s escape from Elba draws the Allied armies and fashionable society to Brussels. Heloise renews her acquaintance with a former suitor, Rosamund confronts her feelings for her cousin Marcus, and Sophie meets an enigmatic French major. Romance flourishes amid balls and military preparations, while everyone tries to ignore how quickly the season may become a battlefield.
When the army marches to Waterloo, private hopes are subjected to the outcome of a European war. The campaign’s uncertainty turns courtship into farewell and forces the Morlands to recognise that rank offers no protection from death. The novel moves from the brilliance of Brussels society to the violence of battle, asking which relationships can survive when the dancers become soldiers and casualties.
