Madness Under the Royal Palms: Love and Death Behind the Gates of Palm Beach

* Nonfiction. By Laurence Leamer. Hyperion, $25.95. Grade: A

Book in a nutshell: Madness Under the Royal Palms was luxuriously researched and richly written. Readers know - just one chapter in - that the author did not hurry his examination of a town full of excess, history and histrionics. Leamer spent 15 years examining and then exposing the inner life and drama of the wealthy in Palm Beach, Fla., and his efforts bring forth a book that is at once scandalous, sad, fascinating and (almost) unbelievable.

Known for his best-sellers, including The Kennedy Women, Leamer takes readers on an inside track to the ultrawealthy and their idiosyncrasies. Those born to wealth as well as the nouveau riche get equal real estate in a book that could only have been written by one who not only gained unprecedented access to a highly private society, but who is equally skilled at spinning a true tale.

Best tidbit: In a telling description of how much size does, indeed, matter, Leamer writes, "A ten-bedroom, nineteen-bathroom, 84,626-square-foot monolith rose out of the clearing, shadowing everything around it. The house is beyond what once was considered human scale. It is so monumental that the mind can barely accept that this is a home looming above the skyline . . . The lady of the house, who had once been a salesperson, traveling from beauty shop to beauty shop, is now living by herself in a home so large that it takes an hour to walk through all its rooms."

Pros: This is a page-turner about a real-life place built of a surreal culture.

Cons: There are few negatives to a book so finely researched and tightly constructed.

Final word: For those who know well the Palm Beach community, Madness will be a delicious, insightful read. For those who've never heard of the place, Madness will be an equally delicious and insightful read.