After an archivist goes against security protocol to show an ex-crush the president's private room at the National Archives, the two stumble upon a dictionary once owned by George Washington, and are soon entangled in a web of conspiracy and murder.

Hardworking London governess Helen Davenport longs for a family of her own but knows the prospect of finding a suitable husband grows dimmer each year. Then she spots an advertisement seeking wives for the churchgoing bachelors of colonial New Zealand and begins an affectionate correspondence with a gentleman farmer. Meanwhile, not far away in Wales, society life bores Gwyneira Silkham, beautiful, daring daughter of a wealthy sheep breeder. She finds...