Ethan Andrews, a skilled carpenter, falls in love with Eliza Everhart, the daughter of a powerful landowner, in 18th-century England during the War of the Austrian Succession. Their love is forbidden due to their starkly different social classes. Ethan enlists in the war to protect his village and prove himself, while Eliza struggles against her father's ambitions and societal expectations. As the war rages on, their infrequent letters reveal the toll it takes on them both—Ethan enduring the horrors of battle, Eliza facing the constraints of her privileged yet suffocating life. Tragedy strikes when Ethan is reported missing in action, forcing Eliza to choose between her family and her heart.