
A gripping no-holds-barred origin story from one of London's most beloved socialites In this candid memoir Basia lays bare the many vicissitudes of her youth & examines her tumultuous relationship with her mother; a dazzling riotous & truly eccentric character with an explosive dark side After a bucolic childhood in rural Surrey Basia spent her adolescence in London living with Camilla & a string of surrogate fathers Abandoned to her own devices following the arrival of Camilla's despotic second husband she quickly rose to become a teenage ' It girl' of high society before an unplanned pregnancy & fall from grace led her to flee to Australia Trapped in an unhappy marriage in a dismal & isolated suburb of Melbourne her increasingly unhinged mother soon followed her & the situation deteriorated leaving Basia surrounded by alcoholism abuse & death while trying to protect her two young children Following a narrow escape & lengthy custody proceedings Basia's story is one of redemption as she has reclaimed the life that misfortune dispossessed her of & has been one of the leading lights of London society & no stranger to the royal household throughout the many years since