Henrietta covers the period 1881-1912, which includes the so-called Golden Age of Edwardian England. A time bringing great changes in the daily lives of many people: telephones, cars, domestic machines and yet remaining legally entrenched in historic ideas of morality. After a lonely childhood in a remote corner of Sussex, England, Lady Henrietta Wimsby is swept into the color and glamour of London Society until her father abruptly summons her home to take over the neglected manor lands of her youth. Her childhood habit of working alongside the gardeners and grooms stands her in good stead and she is determined to defy his expectations and be successful but the timing of an unforeseen event forces her to make the first of several decidedly unconventional decisions. Her father's Will must be contested and her legitimacy confirmed before she can bring her plans to fruition. After an unromantic proposal from the lawyer in the case, Henrietta discovers he has a dangerous secret but eventually they agree to a marriage of companionship. Meanwhile, a mysterious stranger pursues her and slowly she discovers the passion which is absent from her marriage.