Having emigrated to New York and immediately got the kiss-off from her mother-besotted fiance, a Dutch lass takes a well-paid office job and starts liberally sampling the local male talent. After a while she decides to make her pleasure her business too, and as her reputation grows she graduates to a high-class bordello. Soon she realises she has the right talents to make a real success of a place of her own.

The world's most famous madame is called to Washington to testify before Congress.

Xaviera Hollander has to navigate some sleazy studio politics to see the production of the film version of her memoirs.