The Asher family has lived in their large house in Vermont for years. The family servants, Bertha, and her daughter, Jessica, have been with them since Mrs. Asher was a child. Mr. Asher can't help but notice, however, that there's something about Jessica that doesn't quite seem right. Her revelations about various members of the family shock everyone, but are they truth or lies? Regardless, will the Asher family be able to stand by one another as Jessica shakes the foundations of their relationships?

I usually like Buck's Eastern novels better than her Western novels, and this is no exception. There was a lot going on in this book, and I think that's at least part of where the problem was. I think she was a little too ambitious, which made the whole thing seem disjointed. In addition, sections of the book would often jump forward a number of weeks, months, or even years, and it wasn't always obvious how far ahead in time we had jumped. This made it hard to keep track of everything. Overall, it's not bad, but it just wasn't that enjoyable for me, especially compared to some of Buck's other novels (for example, The Living Reed and Command the Morning). ( )