Timely book as it's the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. Tess has been working as a maid in France since she was a teenager. She's poorly paid and her skills as a seamstress are not appreciated. She hears the Titanic is sailing and jobs are available. She has been planning an escape for some time and is able to obtain a job as a maid for a famous designer, Lady Lucile Duff Gordon on the dock just prior to the ship's sailing. Lucile has a volatile personality. She is married to Sir Cosmo a wealthy Englishman. On board, Tess meets a sailor, Jim Bonney and a wealthy businessman. Both are attracted to her. The story relates visions of chaos as the Titanic sinks. Tess is in a different lifeboat from Lucile and discovers later, Lucile's lifeboat was anything but full. Shortly after the rescue ship, the Carpathia arrives in New York, an inquiry begins as to what actually happened on board. Tess is caught up in working in Lucile's impressive studio where an upcoming fashion show is fast approaching. News of the events on board the sparsely loaded lifeboat begin to circulate and Lucile and her husband are pressured into hiding in their hotel to avoid further gossip and accusations. Tess befriends a star reporter, Sarah, aka Pinkey but she is forbidden with talking to her by Lucile. The book is based on history as the famous designer and her husband were on the Titanic and they were also in a lifeboat with few survivors.