When English spy Simon Quinn has to deliver the assassin Lysette Rousseau back to her boss in exchange for some of his own men caught spying, he is glad to be rid of her. Despite Lysette's beauty, Simon finds
that he doesn't connect with her and even wonders if she's slightly mad. However, just a few days later he sees Lysette at a masked ball and finds himself fascinated by her allure. It's not long before he realizes that they are twins and that Lynette, the sweet and soft twin, believes
that Lysette died two years ago.
Thus
begins the hunt for the mysterious L'Esprit, who has been blackmailing Lysette's keeper Desjardins and who also caused much anguish to Lysette's mother twenty years
earlier. With a subplot of an attempt by Lysette to learn secrets from Edward James, secretary to Benjamin Franklin, there are plenty of plot threads to keep the story going.
Author Sylvia Day delineates the characters effectively, although the similarities between the names Lysette and Lynette adds confusion while reading. The story began twenty years before with information about the twins' mother, and that part of the book
seems unnecessary. The interactions between Simon and Lynette are far-fetched
for that historical era, and I didn't find myself caring particularly for any of the characters.
The unmasking of L'Esprit was a surprise to me, but overall the story is forgettable.