Madness under the royal palms

the long version

For a hundred years Palm Beach has been a fantasy land nurtured by, and maintained for, the megawealthy. Leave it to Laurence Leamer, the author known for getting the inside story on his elusive subjects, to take us behind the walls of America's most exclusive enclave. He tells a braided story involving a socialite determined to make it to the top of Palm Beach society, two infamous murders, and a powerful society reporter. As a backdrop, Leamer tells the story of the clash between old money and new, religion and status, and the love, lust, and fatal hatreds that determine the shape of a fiercely protected society. The cast of characters include trophy wives, trophy husbands, purported gigolos, glamorous widows, a pioneering gay couple, a wildly irreverent event planner, a sociopathic multimillionaire, and an elegant society queen.--From publisher description.