Tall. Handsome. Educated. Sensitive. Wealthy. As a teen, Frederick Estibus was seduced by Lady Margery Fitton, an equally rich, porcelain-skinned beauty. Their affair has lasted nine years, but she allows Frederick to do as he pleases—as long as he returns.Then why is he so miserable? Older brother Cuthbert wears a jolly façade but is a drunk, gambler, and philanderer. To secure his inheritance, Cuthbert pushes Frederick into an arranged wedding with Isabella. Their marriage is civil but loveless. And childless. Through their circle of friends, Margery and Cuthbert weave in and out of—and manipulate—Frederick's life.But it's "the melancholy" that overwhelms Frederick. He's at the mercy of the tides, which force him to bow to the whims of others. He realizes he "never made a decision on his own. Not one that mattered."One night, though, Frederick makes a decision: his life has no point. He grabs a pistol and trudges to a gamekeeper's cabin on his estate. There, he encounters Ellie, a delicate woman with a heart-shaped face, writhing in pain while her disengaged husband stands to the side. Frederick summons a doctor and holds Ellie's hand tight as she delivers a baby girl.Years pass, but Frederick cannot forget his fleeting connection with Ellie. To Master the Tides, set in 19th-century England, details Frederick's search for Ellie, the duplicity of the people around him, and his struggle to overcome the tides that have forged all who he is.