It is a truth universally acknowledged that magic is required for any young lady to find her "happily ever after" in a fairytale. But what if the magic is removed? Is it possible to find true love when the world is perfectly ordinary?
A chance meeting at a ball introduces the lovely and accomplished Eleanor to a handsome Austrian Baron. He is charmed by her beauty and goodness, but her stepsisters are jealous of her royal suitor, and Eleanor's dreams of happiness may be swept away forever by their vicious schemes for revenge.
Feisty Isabella, meanwhile, learns that not all is as it seems when she and her father become the guests of a surly and reclusive Scottish Duke. His rough manners hide a kind heart, but his mysterious past may prove too tempting for Isabella to ignore.
Set in Victorian England and beyond, where etiquette reigns and fairy godmothers are noticeably absent, cousins Eleanor and Isabella are left with only their wits, good manners, and accomplishments to secure the happy endings they both desire.
