Character guide

Prudence Tremaine

major

Also known as Miss Prudence, Prue, Mistress Prudence, Madam Prudence, the Honourable Prudence Tremaine

Prudence moves through fashionable London as the elegant young man 'Mr. Merriot,' her composure and sharp tongue earning her a place in circles where her brother's recklessness would betray them. She carries the weight of the family's Jacobite past, weighing her father's grand schemes against the quieter, more dangerous business of simply surviving under a new name. Her wary friendship with Sir Anthony Fanshawe complicates everything: he suspects more than he says, and she finds herself wishing she could tell him the truth.

Sir Anthony Fanshawe

major

Also known as Anthony, Fanshawe, Sir Tony, Tony

Sir Anthony moves through Society with the ease of a man who has nothing to prove, his phlegmatic calm a stark contrast to the anxious schemers around him. He takes an unaccountable liking to the young Mr. Merriot, offering friendship without demanding explanations, even when he suspects the boy of Jacobite sympathies. His quiet loyalty and unsettling perceptiveness make him both the safest ally and the greatest threat to the Tremaines' carefully constructed masquerade.

Robin Tremaine

major

Also known as Robin, Master Robin, Barham, the Honourable Robin Tremaine, Robert Tremaine

Robin Tremaine has spent years following his father's schemes from one scrape to another, and now finds himself in London playing the Honourable Robin Tremaine while dodging the shadow of Tyburn. He is charming, quick to laugh, and quicker to see the absurdity of their situation, but beneath the shrug of fatalism runs a genuine fear of what his father's next grand gesture might cost them. His loyalty to Prudence anchors him, even as his own romantic entanglements threaten to unravel their careful disguise.

Mr. Markham

supporting

Also known as Markham, Gregory Markham, Gregory

Gregory Markham moves through the margins of fashionable London, a man whose friendships are transactional and whose instincts for weakness are sharp. When a nervous stranger comes looking for Lord Barham, Markham sees not a threat but a commodity, and his willingness to squeeze information from the desperate puts him on a collision course with the Tremaines. He is the kind of enemy who does not need proof to act, only suspicion and the promise of profit.

Letty Grayson

supporting

Also known as Letty, Miss Letty, Letitia Grayson, Letitia

Letty Grayson is young, impressionable, and utterly captivated by the mysterious Black Domino who calls her by her name and promises to find her again by the glint of a strange gold ring. She is the kind of girl who believes in adventures and perfect hours, and her innocent longing for the Unknown makes her vulnerable to the very real dangers swirling around her. Her romantic entanglement draws her into the orbit of the Tremaines and their enemies, where fairy-tale promises may prove far more perilous than she imagines.

Mr. Rensley

supporting

Also known as Rensley

Rensley is a man of blunt ambition and little subtlety, convinced that the title and estates of Barham belong to him and willing to bully anyone who stands in his way. He is a persistent suitor to Prudence in her female guise and a snarling adversary to the mysterious Lord Barham, his coarse manners and quick temper making him both a social embarrassment and a genuine threat. His willingness to duel and his readiness to sell out anyone for advantage make him the kind of antagonist who cannot be ignored, only outmaneuvered.

Mr. Merriot

supporting

Also known as Sir Humphrey Grayson, Sir Humphrey, Merriot, young Merriot, Grayson

Mr. Merriot moves through drawing rooms and inns with an easy quizzical charm, trading snuff and banter while quietly engineering rescues and evasions. His bond with his sister is a constant, teasing partnership in which the two trade roles, courage, and wit as the situation demands. What makes him matter is the gap between the languid fop he performs and the decisive swordsman underneath, a tension that pulls the early plot forward and leaves sharper observers wondering exactly whom they are dealing with.

John Burton

supporting

Also known as John, Mr. John Burton

John Burton serves the Tremaine household and moves between households and hiding places with a servant's invisibility, changing his hair, brows, and even his face to slip past pursuit. His loyalty is absolute, but the very skills that make him useful also make him a man nobody quite knows, and the lawyers' summons of a lodge-keeper named Burton hints at a history deeper than service. He matters because the plot's escapes and reunions depend on his nerve and his talent for being someone else.

Miss Merriot

supporting

Also known as Merriot, poor Miss Merriot, the beautiful Miss Merriot

Miss Merriot glides through society as the beautiful, languorous sister, admired and underestimated in equal measure, while her brother Robin supplies the impish daring she claims to lack. She is drawn to the large, sober Sir Anthony Fanshawe and wary of him at once, teasing her brother about a Whig with a sober mind even as she admits she would trust the man. Her calm in the face of danger and her habit of trading identities with Robin make her the steady center of the early intrigue.

Lady Lowestoft

supporting

Also known as my Lady Lowestoft, Lowestoft

Lady Lowestoft presides over a fashionable household where the Merriots' performances are staged and admired, and she has watched Robin's acting closely enough to appreciate its perfection. She is caught between her fondness for her young visitors and the warnings of Lord Barham, who insists she should not trust them, and she manages both with a handkerchief and a knowing sigh. Her willingness to harbor the pair, and her sharp eye for the schemes around her, make her a crucial ally in the story's middle stretch.

Mr. Belfort

minor

Also known as Belfort, Charles Belfort, Charles

An expansive gentleman involved in the social whirl.

Devereux

minor

Also known as Mr. Devereux, Dev

A friend of the Tremaines who aids in their schemes.

Galliano

minor

Also known as Signor Galliano, Girolamo Galliano

An Italian musician or performer who entertains society.

Lord Clevedale

minor

Also known as my Lord Clevedale, Clevedale

A jovial peer who claims to have known young Tremaine.

Lord March

minor

Also known as March

A peer mentioned in the social milieu.

Thérèse de Brûton

minor

Also known as Thérèse

A Frenchwoman who appears in the story.

Viscount Barham

minor

Also known as The late Viscount

The deceased father of Robin and Prudence Tremaine.

Miss Grayson

minor

Also known as the elder Miss Grayson, Grayson

An affronted society lady and sister to Letty.

Peter Merriot

minor

Also known as Peter, Master Peter

A young man caught up in the Merriot family affairs.

Kate Merriot

minor

Also known as Kate, Madam Kate

A woman connected to the Merriot household.

The Honourable Charles

minor

Also known as Charles

A minor nobleman who appears in social scenes.

Mr. Fontenoy

minor

Also known as old Mr. Fontenoy

An older gentleman who appears in the story.

Sir Raymond Orton

minor

Also known as Sir Raymond, Orton

A baronet who moves in fashionable circles.

Mr. Molyneux

minor

Also known as Molyneux

A gentleman encountered in society.

Marthe

minor

Also known as fat Marthe

A servant in the Tremaine household.

Sir Francis Jollyot

minor

Also known as Sir Francis, Jollyot

A baronet who appears in social gatherings.

Matthew

minor

Also known as Mr. Matthew

A servant or minor character in the story.

Brent

minor

Also known as Mr. Brent

A gentleman who interacts with the main characters.

Clapperly

minor

Also known as Mr. Clapperly, young Mr. Clapperly, old Mr. Clapperly

A family of minor gentry appearing in the narrative.

Mr. Troubridge

minor

Also known as Troubridge, Mistaire Troubridge

A gentleman who appears in social scenes.

Lord Kestrel

minor

Also known as Kestrel, young Lord Kestrel

A young nobleman who moves in fashionable circles.

Tom

minor

Also known as Thomas, Sir Thomas

A minor character, possibly a servant or acquaintance.

Mr. Colney

minor

Also known as Colney

A gentleman who appears in the story.

Samuel Burton

minor

Also known as Mr. Samuel Burton, Sam, Burton

A relative or acquaintance of John Burton.

Mrs. Staines

minor

A woman who appears briefly in the narrative.

Lady Dorling

minor

Also known as Dorling

A society lady mentioned in passing.

Robin Lacey

minor

Also known as Robin

A minor character, possibly a friend or acquaintance.

Mr. Walpole

minor

Also known as the elegant Mr. Walpole

An elegant gentleman encountered in society.

Sir Roger Lowestoft

minor

Also known as Sir Roger

A baronet, possibly related to Lady Lowestoft.

Lady Enderby

minor

Also known as my Lady Enderby, Enderby

A society matron who appears in the narrative.

Beatrice Enderby

minor

Also known as Beatrice

A young woman connected to Lady Enderby.

Henry

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant or acquaintance.

Johnny

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant.

Jessup

minor

A servant or minor functionary in the story.

Lawton

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant.

Mr. Selwyn

minor

Also known as Selwyn

A gentleman mentioned in society.

The Margrave

minor

Also known as Margrave

A foreign nobleman mentioned in the narrative.