Book excerpt: A stunning new edition of a darkly “touching and delightful” tale of seduction, jealousy, and betrayal from the master of the novella (The New York Times) Bored on holiday at an Austrian mountain resort, the suave Baron takes a fancy to twelve-year-old Edgar’s mother. But when his initial advances are rejected, he must turn to other means to carry out his seduction. Instead, he lavishes his attention on Edgar, deploying all of his adult charms and wiles to befriend the boy and get closer to the woman he desires. The initially unsuspecting child soon senses something is amiss, but he has no idea of the burning secret that is driving the affair—and that it will soon change his life forever.