The season centers around Marian Brook, a young orphan and the daughter of a Southern general1. In 1882, she moves to New York City to live with her austere aunts, Agnes van Rhijn and Ada Brook. Agnes is a proud and stubborn old-money socialite, while Ada is initially reliant on her sister's charity. Marian's arrival sets the stage for her entry into the complex and rigid social scene of the time.
