Newport, Rhode Island: a world of old money, old names, and sinister secrets. Maggie Holloway, a fashion photographer, goes to visit an old friend -- but when she arrives, the friend is dead, the victim of a violent robbery. Maggie is stunned when she learns that she's the beneficiary of the will -- and even more stunned when she recognizes a pattern of murder in Newport society that will lead the killer straight to her.
Lady Cassandra St. Ives had sworn off marriage ever since becoming a happy widow, but lately her affections have been engaged by a mysterious, long distance correspondent. Cassandra has shared her soul with her far-off admirer, and when he invites her to visit his home she accepts the invitation gladly. Expecting a kindly of gentleman, Cassandra is stunned to find that Count Basilio Montevarchi is a virile man in his prime who knows her heart's most intimate desires--and is only too willing to fulfill every one...
In March 1814, Admiral Sir Richard Bolitho returns to England from several months on the North American coast. The news of Napolean's defeat and abdication has stunned a navy and a nation bled by years of European conflict.
