
Set against the glittering backdrop of Bath’s 1779 social season, the story opens in a lavish North Parade drawing‑room where elegant ladies and their devoted maid await the arrival of the city’s most fashionable hairdresser. Through the witty banter of Lady Betty Longueville and her young companion Griselda, listeners glimpse a world of powdered wigs, flowered gowns, and the bustling rhythm of balls, minuets and the emerging waltz. The dialogue brims with the era’s charm, teasing the delicate dance of courtship, gossip, and the subtle power plays that animate high‑society gatherings.
Amid the sparkle of silk and the hum of anticipation, the narrative introduces Amelia Graves, the steadfast servant whose loyalty to her mistress is matched only by her quiet skepticism of the frivolities surrounding her. As the hairdresser’s tools begin to shape the day’s appearances, the listener is drawn into a tapestry of romance, ambition, and the fleeting pleasures of a bygone season, promising a richly atmospheric portrait of Regency life.
Language
en
Duration
~4 hours (274K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Brian Foley, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2010-07-02
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1830–1899
A hugely popular Victorian writer in her day, she produced more than 200 stories, many of them for young readers and often built around history, faith, and memorable places. Her books were known for turning the past into lively, approachable fiction.
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