November 1868. Eleanor Roche, a mixed-race lady’s maid who has been dismissed for having an affair with her previous mistress, arrives at the remote Crakemere Hall.

Here she encounters the wayward heiress Miranda Radcliffe, whose mind is rumoured to be addled following the death of her brother: and Eleanor’s task is to tame her in preparation for marriage.

If Eleanor fails, she will be banished from the Hall and lose her social standing; but as the volatile relationship between maid and mistress develops, Eleanor realises that the cost of success may be far higher…