'In my life, there are things that have happened to me, and things that I have done, that have proven to be moments that have a clear before and an after. One of those moments, perhaps in some ways the biggest, was the day that I met Richard Aveling for the first time.'

Charlie is twenty-three, single and the new publicity assistant at the independent London publishing house Winden & Shane.

Richard Aveling is fifty-six, married and the author that has defined his generation.

Charlie has long idolised the charming, illustrious writer, who also represents a link to her late mother, who loved his work. But as they embark on an illicit and all-consuming affair, Charlie is forced to hide the relationship from everyone she cares about.

And when the success of Richard's latest book launches him to a new level of fame where all anonymity is lost, she realises she might just be in too deep...