"As a baby, Anne de Bourgh was prescribed laudanum by her doctor, and now the young woman must take the opium-heavy syrup every day. Growing up confined to her father's mansion, Anne had few companions except her cousins, including Fitzwilliam Darcy, whom she is meant to marry. When her father dies unexpectedly, leaving her his vast fortune, Anne has a shocking moment of clarity. In a frenzy of desperation, Anne discards her laudanum and flees. Gone are her hallucinations and lethargy, now replaced by a keen awareness of her own inexperience in the ways of the word. Anne must forge a new identity for herself, learning to navigate high society and the heartbreak of forbidden love."--Page 4 of cover.