The Earl of Dilberne, always the gambler, has lost a fortune (mostly his wife's) in a gold mine in Africa. The Earl and his wife must now look to their children to bail out the family by making advantageous marriages. Daughter Rosina is not a good prospect; she is an outspoken feminist, not given to social compromise or pleasantries. Perhaps Viscount Arthur, if he can stop seeing his mistress, Flora, long enough to get serious about a proper wife. Some of the drain on family resources has been Flora's upkeep, which Arthur is now forced to share--along with her favors--with another man. Arthur doesn't know that Flora's first "protector" was his own father.
Enter Melinda O'Brien, daughter of a Chicago meatpacking millionaire, who because of scandal is not marriageable at home. A title would be nice for her family; her money would help Arthur and his family. On such foundations are many marriages built, then and now.
Weldon's "world of lies" has a glitch here and there, but all will be well in the end. --Valerie Ryan, Cannon Beach Book Company, Ore.