Marianne - Marianne has disconcertingly open manners and a liveliness that Miss Wolfraston deplores. When she visits her aunt in Cheltenham, these traits inevitably lead her into a series of scrapes. Lord Cranbourne has already been disappointed in love once and is in no hurry to find a bride. Annoyed at his sister’s matchmaking attempts, he accompanies his friend Sir Horace Bamber to Cheltenham. He expects to be heartily bored. Then he meets Marianne. Both have lessons to learn; not least that no one is quite what they seem.
Miss Hayes - Seven years ago, Miss Hayes’ world was turned upside down when she lost her father, her betrothed, and any prospect of a comfortable future. Forced to make her own way in the world, she became a teacher at Miss Wolfraston’s Seminary for Young Ladies. She has no wish to re-enter the society that turned its back on her. But when she is asked to be a companion to her pupil, Miss Charlotte Fletcher, her affection for the young lady overcomes her reservations. As ghosts from her past come back to haunt her, feelings long buried begin to surface. By confronting her demons, can she begin to forge a new future?
Georgianna - Georgianna bids adieu to her friend Marianne and returns home with a heavy heart. Before their friendship blossomed, she had been a stranger to affection. Her mama is enraged when she discovers Georgianna has spurned the advances of an extremely eligible man and sends her to her impoverished aunt, hoping that she will realise just how much a lady needs a wealthy husband, regardless of her feelings for him. Georgianna embarks on a journey of self-discovery and meets two very different gentlemen who are far from dull. Her head tells her one is ineligible and her heart that the other would never make her happy. When she suddenly finds herself facing disgrace, it seems she must make a choice. But should she listen to her head or her heart?