To get royal backing on a needed drainage project, a poor French lord must learn to play the delicate games of wit at court at Versailles.

In the periwigged and opulent France of Louis XVI, an unwitting nobleman soon discovers that survival at court demands both a razor wit and an acid tongue.—Dawn M. Barclift

Under the reign of Louis XVI, poor French lord Gregoire learns to master the art of wit in the court of Versailles in order for the king to fund his drainage project. Along the way, he immerses himself in a world where wit and genealogy can make or break one's reputation...—Eric