It tells the poignant story of Anne Elliot, a woman of 27 years (considered rather old for marriage in her time), who, eight years prior, was “persuaded” by her well-meaning but misguided godmother, Lady Russell, to break off her engagement to the man she loved, Captain Frederick Wentworth, due to his lack of fortune and connections.

The novel picks up as Anne’s family, the snobbish and financially irresponsible Elliots, are forced to rent out their ancestral home. Coincidentally, the new tenants are the sister and brother-in-law of none other than Captain Wentworth, who has since returned from the Napoleonic Wars as a wealthy and highly respected naval officer.