Minerva, the widowed Lady Sparrowdale is the daughter of a cit and Lord Lowell, the endearing second son who doesn't have enough money to live up to the standards expected of him, gradually fall in love whilst looking for a seemingly unlimited number of by-blows from Minerva's late husband.

Although Metzger is a master of the beautifully written regency comedy, she does here hit on a number of serious points. Minerva's late husband pursued virgins in a quest for a "cure" for rampant VD (based on fact - this was a well known belief at the time); the by-blows grow up in poverty; Lord Lowell denies himself a family because of his straightened financial circumstances and Minerva shoulders responsibility for a financial empire. Some meaty issues here which provide a background note to the banter and comedy Metzger does so well.

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This is a unique story because it begins with the death of Lady Sparrow's husband. He is an unlamented earl who, with Lady Sparrow's father, forced her to marry the earl. After he dies, Minerva finds records that her deceased husband had fathered several boys. He had to pay for the children's' keep because he had lied and tricked the women into false marriages. He was trying to keep the information from the newspapers and ton. However, Minerva had no idea how to find the children.

So, she hires an investigator, who is the second son of a duke. They scurry around trying to find the boys, to offer them a better life. Neither Minerva or Lord Lowell are interested in marriage. However, while they are looking for the 12 boys, they become interested in each other. This is a gentle comedy about two people finding love and several children to raise.

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