Viola Otway, young, romantic and with little formal schooling, has been sent out into the world by her guardian to earn her living. But her lack of education and experience are no disadvantage for her job at the Society for the Conservation of Ancient Buildings, otherwise known as SCAB. Viola and her boss are sent to assess Inskip Park, a huge house with an incredible facade and domes like Brighton Pavilion. The roof leaks, the walls drip with damp, the food is terrible and the servants distinctly odd - but Viola is enchanted. She loves everything about the house, the garden, and the peculiarly eccentric Inskip family - particularly Jeremy, the handsome, lazy and utterly charming son and heir. Five days later Viola returns to London having made some life-changing decisions. Even an unexpected marriage proposal fails to deflect her from her declared purpose: to acquire an education...