The Earl of Hawthorne has been prodded to purchase a house right around the corner from his mansion, 5 Upper Seymour Street. It can become a secure place for discreet affairs. The Earl has the reputation of being the best rube in town. He has bedded just about every woman that he can. He encounters Lady Keighley, who has just lost her husband. In conversations with her, he finds that she has desires to be a mistress and no man's wife. Anne, Lady Hawthorne, has a great friend who needs a place to stay, so she has set her up to live at 5 Upper Seymour Street. Fliss, her friend, wants to be a single woman who can manage her inherited mill, after being rejected by the family of the man that she loved because she had no nobility. Georgiana comes charging into Earl Hawthorne's life as a ward he was not aware of. She wishes to become a mistress so that she can acquire jewels, furs and travel.

This book is written well and is very fun to read. These ladies are probably not the norm for ladies of the Victorian age. There are some very serious women who know what they want and go after it, no matter what it takes. These were some fun characters with a lot of life.