Set against the backdrop of Cape Cod, the narrative unfolds over a single transformative day where a woman confronts long-held secrets and the complexities of love and betrayal. As she grapples with a pivotal decision that has been years in the making, the story explores themes of self-discovery and the impact of past choices on the present.
"Before anyone else is awake, on a perfect August morning, Elle Bishop heads out for a swim in the glorious fresh water pond below 'The Paper Palace', the gently decaying summer camp in the back woods of Cape Cod where her family has spent every summer for generations. As she passes the house, Elle glances through the screen porch at the uncleared table from a dinner party the previous evening; empty wine glasses, candle wax on the table cloth, echoes of laughter of family and friends. Then she dives beneath the surface of the freezing water to the shocking memory of the sudden passionate encounter she had the night before, up against the wall outside the house, as her husband and mother chatted to the dinner guests inside. So begins a story that unfolds over 24 hours and across 50 years, as decades of family legacies, love, lies, secrets, and one unspeakable incident in her childhood lead Elle to the precipice of a life-changing decision. Over the next 24 hours, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her much-loved husband, Peter, and the life she imagined would be hers with her childhood love, Jonas, if a tragic event hadn't forever changed the course of their lives."
W piękny sierpniowy poranek Eleanor Bishop pływa w stawie w pobliżu Paper Palace - letniej rezydencji rodziny na Cape Cod. Nurkując w wodzie, ponownie przeżywa pełną pasji i barwną przygodę, która przydarzyła jej się poprzedniej nocy, podczas gdy jej mąż i matka beztrosko rozmawiała z gośćmi... I dopiero dom wszystko widział - ten cichy świadek zna najskrytsze tajemnice Eleonory. Ella opowiada historię obejmującą dwadzieścia cztery godziny i pięćdziesiąt lat, historię z lekką nutą miłości i gorzkim posmakiem zdrady. Ella zmuszona jest dokonać wyboru - tym razem ostatecznego. Co wybierze i jakie będzie teraz jej życie?