Miss Amelia Bourne is a witch. Actually, she comes from a family of witches. Despite her unusual upbringing and talents, she is still a member of society and still required to find herself a husband. Herein lies the problem. Who’d want a wife who with a whispered word can turn a manor blue, heal major wounds, or make inanimate objects do her bidding? Amelia’s uncle trusts that an old college friend, Mr. Bentham, and his family, can successfully find her a spouse.

Sebastian Stapleton originally wants nothing to do with Amelia. In fact, he loathes her, everything from her sharp tongue to her simple ways, to her inability to play a musical instrument or conform to society. And she, in turn, appears to share the same feelings. After a sip of poisoned punch, however, they fall madly in love. If only a happily-ever-after were immediately in store for them. Sebastian takes Amelia and her friend, Isabella Bentham, to his family’s country estate, Rawdon Park, to introduce his betrothed to his brother and sister-in-law. Unfortunately, the elder brother, Lord Rawdon, has his own secrets, and they’re about to come back to haunt him.

Can Amelia protect the Stapleton family from the impending evil? How many characters have either slept with or borrowed money from the mysterious Lady Margaret? Will Sebastian pull his head out of his ass and realize that alcohol and whoring is not the immediate answer to life’s problems? Can Sebastian’s butler speak for one moment without slurring his words like some lisping, foot-dragging Igor? Will Isabella Bentham have a single redemptive moment or will she always be portrayed as a simpering, shallow, money-grubbing creature? These questions’ answers and more await you.

This is one of those books you read cover to cover in one sitting, trapped under its spell, only to emerge much later to rub a hand across your face and murmur “what happened?”. Are their plot problems? Sure. Do the men, including the hero, act somewhat sissy and speak totally unlike men? Yes, sometimes. Is the heroine Polly-Anne-ish? Yes.  The villains flat, without a redemptive trace, and pure evil? Yep. But, the most important question? Does it transport the reader to another time and place, capture his or her attention,  with an urgency more pressing than sleep, supper, and viewing a new episode of Drop Dead Diva?  Yes. And that’s what matters.