Henry Symes Lehr was born in 1869 in Maryland. He wanted to establish himself with the elite of society, throwing massive dinner parties. He even threw parties where the pets of rich people ate at a fully serviced table while wearing clothes. George Jay Gould's wife, Edith, introduced Henry Lehr to her widowed friend, Elizabeth Drexel. Elizabeth and Henry were married a year after they met, but she was in for a shock- her husband was not sexually attracted to women. He benefited from the wealth her banker father left to her, and she benefited from his social status. In public, they had a wonderful marriage. In private, they did not. They remained in this arrangement for 28 years, until he died. There were a few details in this book that would have been scandalous at the time, such as his dressing in drag for a performance, his sexuality, etc. I realize that she wrote her personal account of this and was not a professional writer, but this was not put together in a coherent way. That is my personal opinion, and if you want to try this book out, go for it. I would not put my stamp of recommendation on it though.