A peasant girl dreams of coming out in London high society, but her biggest obstacle isn’t being poor, it’s being a secret heiress.

SYNOPSIS:

A kind country reverend raises Evelina, an orphan abandoned by her nobleman father, in the isolation of the countryside. Evelina dreams of traveling to London, not recognizing home is the safest place for her. When she turns seventeen, a wealthy family friend takes her to London for the season and introduces her to society, its balls, promenades and operas.

Despite her efforts to fit in, Evelina's ignorance of the world and its rules and her secret identity make her prey to Sir Willoughby, a lecherous aristocrat. Willoughby discovers Evelina’s noble birth and plots to ruin her reputation in the eyes of others so that he may marry her himself and collect her inheritance. He attempts to seduce her. When that fails, he tries even more devious means, including setting her up for a potential rape.

Evelina’s bravado, however, also charms the virtuous Lord Orville. He and Willoughby compete, each in their own very different manner, for her hand. Evelina changes into a confident young lady who can hobnob with the best of them. She learns society's rules, however, only so she can smash them to smithereens. She triumphantly marries Orville, despite public disapproval, and the two say to heck with London and move to the country.