Rosemary Chivers is haunted by the choices she made as a teenager --- and by those made for her by a controlling mother. Now, in the Cold War era of conformity and suspicion, Rosemary is a modern new teacher at a school for troubled girls. She happens to know that one of the students is the child she gave up. But which one? Ignoring warnings, Rosemary forms an impenetrable bond with the three girls who are the right age. But these are no ordinary girls, and what begins as an effort to bring closure to her own rebellious youth soon spirals dangerously out of control. Rosemary is prepared to do anything to find her daughter. What she isn’t prepared for are the deadly consequences that come with discovery --- or just how wicked wayward girls can be.

After her mother’s death, penniless May Kimble lives a lonely life until an aunt she didn’t know existed summons her to San Francisco. There she’s welcomed into the wealthy Sullivan family and their social circle. Initially overwhelmed by the opulence of her new life, May soon senses that dark mysteries lurk in the shadows of the Sullivan mansion. Her glamorous cousin often disappears in the night. Her aunt wanders about in a laudanum fog. And a maid keeps hinting that May is in danger. Then, on an early April morning, San Francisco comes tumbling down. Out of the smoldering ruins, May embarks on a harrowing road to reclaim what is hers. This tragic twist of fate, along with the help of an intrepid and charismatic journalist, puts vengeance within May’s reach. But will she take it?

Penniless and disgraced, Adelaide Wentworth is feeling rather desperate. With nothing left to lose, she and her sister, Louisa, flee to Lake Geneva with Adelaide’s lover, the infamous poet Julian Estes. There, Louisa hopes to persuade her former lover, celebrated writer Bayard Sonnier, to advance Julian’s career. At the Villa Diodati --- the place that inspired the writing of FRANKENSTEIN 60 years earlier --- Louisa plots to rekindle her affair with Bayard, while Adelaide hopes to restore her fading love for Julian by being the muse he needs. But soon, a confused Adelaide turns to Giovanni Calina --- Bayard’s assistant and a man with his own secrets and deep resentments --- and the two form a dangerous alliance.