
The narration shifts to Annie, a woman bound in a crumbling marriage to a cruel childhood love. Through her sister-in-law's social circle, she becomes romantic friends with Claudine and Suzy, another character inspired by Georgie Raoul-Duval.
The fourth book of the Claudine series. Preceded by Claudine en ménage (1902) and followed by La Retraite Sentimentale (1907).