This was an somewhat enjoyable read, but not 5 stars. The characters were stock characters, the history minimal, and the plot predictable. The world of late 19th c. Washington and the Chesapeake were not illuminated. And a minor point, chesnut horses never have black manes.The main character's issues (her scholarship and her foot) were so quickly solved by some new dresses. And, of course, the sister's love affair and marriage are just fodder for the next novel, when her husband dies or is murdered and her professor comes back on the scene.... See what I mean... so predictable!