When Kate Collison's father gets a commission to paint a miniature of a Norman baron, he asks his daughter Kate to paint it because he is losing his vision. The Baron discovers the deception but supports Kate's talent. But just as her career seems assured and she has begun a romance with the baron's cousin Bertrand, the Baron decides he has other plans for Kate. His ruthlessness makes her hate him, but she is also attracted to him. The story is set in England and France between the eighteen 'sixties and 'seventies and combines history with romance and suspense.
