Alva Smith, the daughter of a well-known but impoverished Southern family, married into one of the wealthiest dynasties of America's Gilded Age: the nouveau riche Vanderbilts, who were deeply looked down upon by the elite society of the time. But the stubborn Alva decided to use all means to fight for the respect due to his new family. He had nine great mansions designed and built, which greatly influenced the cityscape of New York as it is known today; he gave great balls and arranged for his daughter to marry a count. At the same time, she successfully defied the conventions defining women of the time, asserted her will in her marriage, and became one of the leading personalities of the women's suffrage movement.
In her biographical novel, Therese Anne Fowler paints a world in which immeasurable wealth is pitted against desperate poverty; social ambition with social contempt, friendship with betrayal. An Impeccable Lady is an unforgettable story about a remarkable woman, Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont, whose life is great proof that history is written by those who know - and are willing to break the rules.