Mary Jackson Peale

By 23, the supremely confident Mary Jackson-Peale had become one of the most influential theatrical agents on London's prestigious West Side. But her self-indulgent lifestyle, which included a string of bi-sexual relationships, endless cocktails of booze and drugs, and the accidental manslaughter of her sex-craved boss, made her a felon on the run.

To escape Scotland Yard's dragnet, Mary created a new identity and fled to America with no money, no contacts, and the guilt that her mother's partner had been imprisoned for her indiscretions. Slowly but surely, she overcame these obstacles -- and a few new ones -- to regain her mojo and become one of Broadway's most sought-after theatrical agents. Now, 37, and at the top of her theatrical game, she fell deeply in love with a handsome, romantic Venetian vintner. Ironically, her world would collapse with a bang that could be heard around the world.