Sixteen-year-old Katya Spivak is out for a walk on the gracious streets of Bayhead Harbor with her two summer babysitting charges when shes approached by silver-haired, elegant Marcus Kidder. At first his interest in her seems harmless, even pleasant like his name, a sort of gentle joke. His beautiful home, the childrens books hes written, his classical music, the marvelous art in his study, his lavish presents to her Mr. Kidders life couldnt be more different from Katyas drab working-class existence back home in South Jersey, or more enticing. But by degrees, almost imperceptibly, something changes, and posing for Mr. Kidders new painting isnt the lighthearted endeavor it once was. What does he really want from her? And how far will he go to get it?In the tradition of Oatess classic story Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? A Fair Maiden is an unsettling, ambiguous tale of desire and control.
