When social climber Alroy Kear is given a plum commission to write the biography of recently deceased and highly regarded author Edward Driffield by Driffield’s second wife, Kear needs background on Driffield’s early years. Kear reaches out to an acquaintance, fellow author William Ashenden, who knew Driffield and his first wife Rosie while Driffield was early in his career and still largely unknown.

Set in London during interwar years, W. Somerset Maugham skillfully weaves an engaging and sometimes humorous satire of London’s literary society. Originally published as a serial, Cakes and Ale drew attention for its unflattering portrayals of London literary society’s snobbery, and for the main characters, who were widely held to be based on English novelists Hugh Walpole and Thomas Hardy . (This was initially denied, but later confirmed in part, by Maugham himself.) While Maugham felt this was one of his lesser works, he noted that it was his favorite based on his portrayal of the colorful character Rosie.