Content Warning: Both the source material and this guide contain descriptions of genocide, violence, and anti-gay bias.

December 31, 1919

Three-year-old Cristabel waits for her father, Jasper Seagrave, to bring home his new wife, Rosalind. The Seagraves live on an estate named Chilcombe in Dorset, England. The manor house has seen better days. When Jasper arrives, he is annoyed that his daughter is dirty. Cristabel drops a handful of soil onto her new stepmother’s boots. Rosalind is 23 and is younger than Jasper. (She was once a London debutante, but she has married Jasper out of desperation because most eligible young men died in World War I.) Cristabel hears the servants speculate that Jasper will soon have a son. She decides that she would enjoy having a brother. Her room is in the attic, and the 14-year-old kitchen maid, Maudie Kitcat, sleeps in the next room. Maudie and Cristabel practice learning to read and write together. Whenever Cristabel cries at night, Maudie is the one who comforts her.

January 1, 1920

Rosalind lies in bed, horrified by the experience of losing her virginity. Her lady’s maid, Betty Bemrose, coaxes her to bathe and get dressed.