A young pianist is shocked when she witnesses a strange chess tournament with a robot. Could there be a gruesome secret behind this exhibition?

Arrogant aristocrat Rupert Campbell-Black has high social position, women at his feet, money and fame in the world of show jumping. But Rupert has a rival - the brooding gypsy Jake Lovell, whose loathing for the "Pin Up of Penscombe" has driven him to the top of the riding world to match Rupert's skills. A bitter feud festers between the two stars, who have fought and fornicated their way round the show rings of the world, and now comes to a showdown at the Los Angeles Olympics. As rivals in love and sport, the stage is set for what becomes a compulsive blend of sex, romance, and adventure.

The story opens with Celestine eluding arrest with a friend as the police raid a brothel. While hiding out in the hayloft of the Count de la Braquette's estate, she meets the hayseed handyman Sébastien and the butler Malou, who reward her favors with the offer of employment. In a manner recalling Terence Stamp's effect on the household in TEOREMA, Celestine's open and relaxed attitude toward sexuality has a transformative effect on the isolated, moribund inhabitants of the mansion, imbuing them with gift of renewed life for the men and women alike, that remains even after a third act twist that forces her to betray them.