Like a wilderling - a cultivated flower that manages to live in the wild - Lucienne Rochford has survived her terrible early years in France.

Although born into the British aristocracy, Lucy was raised in obscurity first in a French convent and then in a Parisian brothel. At sixteen, she is restored to her rightful place as the daughter of the Rochford family, but a devastating betrayal by her father fires her determination to seek wealth and independence at any cost.

She learns the ways of society and catches the eye of the handsome and noble Count Alexis Zemski, who swears his love and agrees to marry Lucy even after learning of her past.

As World War I shatters Europe, Lucy Rochford begins to learn what life and love are all about...