Frances Wynn, widow to the late Earl of Harleigh, has no sooner sent her mother and daughter off on a shopping trip to Paris than she and her fiancé, George Hazelton, are socializing with visiting members of the Russian royal family. Scandal also comes calling: Inspector Delaney turns up outside Frances's house with a young French woman claiming she is Mrs. George Hazelton. Mrs. Hazelton, aka Irena, also insists that she is the illegitimate daughter of Russian royalty, that she has been abducted and held for ransom many times, and that someone is sending her threatening letters. When George arrives, he clarifies that he is not married to Irena, but he can confirm her royal parentage. When Irena is found strangled in Frances' garden, Frances and George must determine which of Irena's outlandish stories were based in fact. -- adapted from jacket