Jason Cummings, Duke of Rayne seeks shelter from the ravening hordes of mommas throwing sheltered misses at his head whenever he appears in public. The safest place for him, at least until he reconciles with his duty to get married is the depths of the Historical Society, a long-time bastion of dusty male consequence. At least until the fascinating Miss Crane comes to call.

Winnifred Crane is determined to see her work acknowledged and her father's last wish fulfilled. Before his death, her father had written a letter revealing that she had been the authoress of many of the treatises published by the Historical Society under the nom de plume C. W. Marks, and asking for their acknowledgement of her work. She will allow nothing to stand in her way, especially not her blustering buffoon of a cousin, George Bambridge who hopes to trade on her father's reputation to secure his own place in the Society. She finds an unexpected ally in the Duke of Rayne who is tapped by the society to oversee her attempts to prove herself. If she can prove her assertion that a painting held in high regard by the president of the society is not, as they believe by Albrecht Dürer, they will acknowledge she has the level of expertise to have written the C. W. Marks papers.

Kate Noble has written a sparkling, fascinating story, run through with bright gleams of humor and crafted with a keen sense of the absurd. From her first appearance in FOLLOW MY LEAD, Winnifred Crane commands your attention and sympathy, and watching her effect on Jason as he struggles to keep up with her while falling head-over-heels in love kept me turning pages late into the night. I am off to find a copy of The Summer of You (published March, 2011) wherein Jane Cummings, sister of Jason found her own true love.