New York heiress Mary Philipse was the richest belle in Colonial America-- and George Washington's first love. But her outward beauty and refinement disguised madness. A deception long hidden from the world ultimately led Mary Philipse to be named a traitor, condemned to death and left with nothing. Inspired by letters, witness accounts, and journal entries from the eighteenth century, this novel explores their relationship-- and shows how it may have sparked a flame that became the American Revolution. -- adapted from jacket, regular print edition