The Soul Of Kindness: Virago Modern Classics

'"Here I am!" Flora called to Richard as she went downstairs. For a second, Meg felt disloyalty. It occurred to her of a sudden that Flora was always saying that, and that it was in the tone of one giving a lovely present.'
Elegant, blonde and beautiful, Flora has everything under control: her perfect home, her husband Richard, her friend Meg, adoring Kit, and the writer Patrick.
Flora entrances everyone, dangling visions of happiness and success before their spellbound eyes. All are bewitched by this golden tyrant. Except, that is, for the clear-eyed painter, Liz, who can see that Flora's kindness is the sweetest poison of them all.
'The Soul of Kindness, like many of Elizabeth Taylor's novels, is so expert that it seems effortless . . . Taylor is one of the hidden treasures of the English novel' Philip Hensher, Daily Telegraph