Eager to find her place in the restrictive society of 1850's England, young Claire Stonewall struggles to establish her own identity. Born into a life of luxury and privilege, she discovers, after the sudden death of her father, rigid expectations rise threatening to confine her to a preordained position. Swept off her feet by Mr. Nathaniel Clayton, her fate which at first seemed dreadful, turns promising. The handsome Clayton and beautiful Claire appear to be the perfect match. As the union of their two families seems inevitable, a chance encounter changes everything. Claire's joy shifts to fear and she learns just how quickly society can and will turn to threaten her family's name with impending ruin. Will she accept the judgement of society and relinquish herself to a future of loneliness, condemning her family to ruin? Or, will she confront those who attempt to discredit her and her family's name, to restore her reputation?