Britain in the 1840s. Susanne Thorne is an orphan of means, one reason why Bette Hollander carries the young English girl off to her home in far-away Scotland.

Bette would be more than happy for Susanne to fall in love with her handsome, headstrong son Louis, for marriage to the little heiress would repay old debts and restore the Hollander family's fortunes.

But love cannot be delivered to order and as Susanne grows up and proves to have a mind of her own, Bette's plans for a match made in heaven seem fated to end in disaster.