Meredith Burnley’s half-sister, Annabel, is an heiress and her guardians are threatening to have her locked in an asylum.  Meredith goes to London to seek help from Annabel’s grandparents.  Despite a rocky past, Annabel’s grandmother welcomes the two women into their lives. 

Annabel’s grandmother, Georgina, wants to sponsor both ladies for a Season, something Meredith is not comfortable with.  While Annabel is an heiress, Meredith is just a common woman.

Lord Silverton is cousin to Annabel and the titled head of his family.  He agrees to take the ladies under his wing, but family charity is only part of the reason.  His inappropriate attraction to Meredith is a surprise to the closed off lord, but something he can’t deny. 

As the family spends more time together and secrets come out, Silverton and Meredith have to fight more than just society to be together – they have to fight themselves.

I really liked the characters in Mastering the Marquess.  The love that grows between Silverton and Meredith actually has obvious cause, not just ephemeral chemistry, which is hard to demonstrate on paper.  All the characters are well-fleshed out and each serve a purpose in the overall story.  The plot is twisty and veers in unexpected directions, and keeps the reader on their toes.  Overall, this is an excellent story with characters you will remember after the last page is done.