Following the death of her father, Isabel Archer leaves the comforts of Albany, New York to stay with her aunt Lydia Touchett at her London estate. There she meets Lydias rich husband, David, her cousin Ralph, and the Touchettss proud neighbor, Lord Warburton. Soon, too, come marriage proposals from Lord Warburton and Caspar Goodwood, the son of a wealthy mill owner. Although Isabel declines both offers, she eventually gives her hand to Gilbert Osmond, an American ex-pat in Florence.
The worlds of new and old collide for a young American who must choose her destiny.
