The "New York Times" bestselling author of "The Aviator s Wife "returns with a triumphant new novel about New York s Swans of the 1950s and the scandalous, headline-making, and enthralling friendship between literary legend Truman Capote and peerless socialite Babe Paley.
Of all the glamorous stars of New York high society, none blazes brighter than Babe Paley. Her flawless face regularly graces the pages of "Vogue, "and she is celebrated and adored for her ineffable style and exquisite taste, especially among her friends the alluring socialite Swans Slim Keith, C. Z. Guest, Gloria Guinness, and Pamela Churchill. By all appearances, Babe has it all: money, beauty, glamour, jewels, influential friends, a prestigious husband, and gorgeous homes. But beneath this elegantly composed exterior dwells a passionate woman a woman desperately longing for true love and connection.
Enter Truman Capote. This diminutive golden-haired genius with a larger-than-life personality explodes onto the scene, setting Babe and her circle of Swans aflutter. Through Babe, Truman gains an unlikely entree into the enviable lives of Manhattan s elite, along with unparalleled access to the scandal and gossip of Babe s powerful circle. Sure of the loyalty of the man she calls True Heart, Babe never imagines the destruction Truman will leave in his wake. But once a storyteller, always a storyteller even when the stories aren t his to tell.
Truman s fame is at its peak when such notable celebrities as Frank and Mia Sinatra, Lauren Bacall, and Rose Kennedy converge on his glittering Black and White Ball. But all too soon, he ll ignite a literary scandal whose repercussions echo through the years. "The Swans of Fifth Avenue" will seduce and startle readers as it opens the door onto one of America s most sumptuous eras.
Advance praise for "The Swans of Fifth Avenue"
The strange and fascinating relationship between Truman Capote and his swans is wonderfully reimagined in this engrossing novel. It s a credit to Benjamin that we end up caring so much for these women of power, grace, and beauty and for Capote, too. Sara Gruen, " New York Time"s bestselling author of" Water for Elephants"
A delicious tale . . . Melanie Benjamin has turned Truman Capote s greatest scandal into your next must-read book-club selection. Jamie Ford, "New York Times" bestselling author of "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet"
Reading" The Swans of Fifth Avenue" is like being ushered into a party where you re offered champagne and fed the sumptuous secrets of New York s elite without having to pay the price afterward. Vanessa Diffenbaugh," New York Times" bestselling author of" The Language of Flowers"
Benjamin convincingly portrays a large cast of colorful historical figures while crafting a compelling, gossipy narrative with rich emotional depth. "Library Journal"
The beautiful people of the fifties and sixties glitter in this riveting tale of betrayal and greed. . . . Irresistible, astonishing, and told with verve. Lynn Cullen, nationally bestselling author" "of" Mrs." "Poe"
From Truman Capote s devious charm to Babe Paley s tragic glamour, Melanie Benjamin conjures, in vivid detail, a lost world. The season s must-read guilty pleasure. Michael Callahan, author of "Searching for Grace Kelly"
A deliciously spiky novel of love and betrayal. Alex George, author of "A Good American"

"From the Hardcover edition.""