Opulence, Sex, Intrigue, Decadence, Excess, Subterfuge, Greed: All were watchwords of 'polite' society in late eighteenth-century France for, while French influence was global in scope and burgeoning with incredible possibilities, the Monarchy was so deeply in debt that it was forced to sell off Royal perogatives and wholesale chunks of the empire to cover its excesses.

The turmoil and passion of this extraordinary period creates an incredible backdrop for our story: A war between two noble families involving their children, their retainers and supporters, and their overseas holdings. The battle spills over into the salons of Paris, involving the all-powerful Church and finally arrives at the Palace of Versailles.

Never missing a beat of Shakespearean irony or prowess, Decadent Lives scathingly details the existence of two wildly beautiful and outrageously wealthy families in an incestuous dance of malice and betrayal that ultimately begins to unravel the framework of each. The Vinnieres are a glamorous combination of fury and genius who use their wealth and connections to deliciously sinister ends. The Tansons are a trusting and good-hearted lot whose naïveté and greed threaten to undermine their happy existence.