the life of a poor merchant's daughter in victorian era london is quite boring. charlotte porter, it seems, is the exception. desperate for a source of income once her father's gambling debts have drained their funds and placed them in the sights of some of london's most notorious criminals, charlotte is in search of salvation. it comes in the form of handsome detective alexander langley, a curious gentleman with a strange connection to scotland yard and an even stranger connection to the american west. charlotte soon finds herself swept into his world of investigation and intrigue. when a case of art theft turns into murder and she and alexander are thrown into the seedy underbelly of the london elite, charlotte realizes that the work isn't the only thing she's become attached to. but now, her father's powerful creditors are ready to close the books on them, and charlotte must find a way to keep them out of the red because this time it won't be written in ink.