Miss Charlotte Stanwood was the despair of her family. She had reached the ripe age of eighteen without a husband, and if her disastrous first season in London was any indication, she was doomed to spinsterhood.

What could you do with a girl who would not learn to chatter sweetly or sew neatly or even play the harp? Instead Charlotte rode as well as any man, read the most boring books, and even knew how to speak German.

All society was startled when the dashing, handsome, immensely wealthy Duke of Imbrie asked for Charlotte's hand - and shocked when she turned him down. But that was just the first of many surprises Miss Charlotte Stanwood had in store!