When Emma Knightley discovers that her father's sister made a misalliance with a weaver, and that this Mr Blenkinsop is asking his late wife's family to bring his daughter Prudence into society, it is something of a shock. Prudence is a surprise when she arrives, after having made an encounter on her journey with the irritated Lord Alverston and his wayward nephew; and appears from her propensity for scrapes to have been badly named However, Prudence is a merry girl with a lot of common sense and both Mr Knightley and Lord Alverston are impressed by her concerns for the poor in the 'year without a summer' and her sensible suggestions to help preserve some crops. And meanwhile, Prudence finds love.