Miss Sylvia Parnell, a beautiful heiress, leaves Bath and the Academy for Young Gentlewomen for Regency London. There she resides under the guardianship of her aunt, Lady Rowena. Sylvia's innocence and wilfulness presents an irresistible challenge to the worldly Rowena. Correction and punishment are routine in this unconventional household, until Sylvia flees, stumbling naively from one frightening adventure to another...