The spirited daughter of an American shipping magnate, Cassandra Rose Berkeley is blessed with beauty, intelligence, and wit. She loves her sheltered and predictable life in early-nineteenth-century Boston, but her father decides she needs something else-The Duke of Hawthorne for a husband.

The young beauty is sent to England to meet this powerful Duke, but he has no intention of taking an American for a bride. Cassandra's father hopes that despite the nobleman's reservations he will fall in love with his daughter, but he does not realize that a dashing young sailor named Matthew will steal her heart as she journeys to London.

Complications arise when not only does the Duke unwillingly develop feelings for her, but so does his best friend and half the eligible men of the aristocracy. Unexpectedly, Cassandra finds herself faced with some monumental decisions that will decide the path of her life. Who will her heart choose?

Travel from America to England and to Italy and see how the most important figures of the day, including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, William Wilberforce, William Carey, John James Audubon, Ferdinand III, the Duke of Wellington and many others, steer Cassandra toward her fate. The Fragrance of Joy will lead you on a journey full of faith, compassion, and love.