Young and precocious, Lucy Honeychurch lives and breathes within the suffocating confines of Edwardian social norms. During a trip to Italy, a stolen kiss with the handsome but unsuitable George Emerson ignites a curious, unrequited love. Facing a nosy chaperone, a rushed engagement to the suitable but dull Cecil, and her own repressed feelings, Lucy must choose between heart and duty when she again encounters George back in England.