Set in early 1800s, England...Martha Hopwood, who lives with her sisters and parents in Cambridgeshire, meets a gentleman named Mr. Samuel Woodhead, a friend of Alexander Harker of Eastease in Lincolnshire.Mr. Woodhead takes up residence at the nearby estate of Copperbeeches and pursues Martha both in Cambridgeshire and at Eastease, when her family is invited to visit there.His sudden departure from Eastease, when all were still asleep, prompts Martha to consider an alternative future. Martha pursues her independence, until the return of the gentleman who stole her heart, and upon whom her family's financial future may depend.In a time when a woman could not be married and independent, Martha Hopwood has to consider where her true future lies.