Lucy Honeychurch, accompanied by her vigilant cousin Charlotte Bartlett, makes her first foray in to the globe, touring Italy. Thrown into new and exhilarating situations, Lucy experiences an extremely different existence to her typical existence in the countryside of southern England. As her horizons widen and many of her Italian cable connections adhere to her homeward, Lucy, a talented pianist with an excellent brain, discovers herself in a unexpected emotional struggle. Caught between two males – the unconventional and spirited George Emerson, and sophisticated Cecil Vyse – Lucy can be pulled between the social and sexual proprieties of her upbringing and the spontaneous promptings of her heart. But can she make a good choice?