The Beautiful and Damned

F. Scott Fitzgerald's second novel.
As is typical of Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and Damned is at once a gripping morality tale, a rueful meditation on love, money and decadence, and an acute social document. This thematic dualism is created and sustained by an overarching consistency of tone and delivery. There exists a rare balance between the protagonist's poetic commentary and immediate circumstances, and the wider context of the novel, creating two equally significant levels to the text that complement each other synergistically.
The novel provides an excellent portrait of the Eastern elite as the Jazz Age begins its ascent, engulfing all classes into what will soon be known as Café Society. As with all of his other novels, it is a brilliant character study and is also an early account of the complexities of marriage and intimacy.