"There is a firm conviction throughout the world that a single man with a decent fortune cannot do without a wife," reads the introduction to the famous Pride and Prejudice. But what is the poor newlywed to do in the event that the man turns out to be a violent and arrogant jerk immediately after marriage? Eighteen-year-old Alethea, the youngest daughter of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, cannot be brought to her knees by this. Although this was unheard of in England shortly after the Napoleonic Wars, he decides to run away and disguised as a man, accompanied by an equally disguised chambermaid, sets out across half of Europe - to Venice, where he seeks help from his understanding older sister Camilla.
Also traveling to the city on the lagoon from London is Titus Manningtree, a nobleman in his thirties, a former soldier and politician whose "women" are not interested in laundromats. His goal is to find Titian's painting, which was lost to his family during the turmoil of war. When he meets Alethea in Paris and then during the dangerous crossing of the Alps, he is not fooled by her disguise even for a moment. As in Jane Austen's novels, however, rigid conventions and prejudices are playfully defeated by the charm of affection. As soon as an enraged spouse appears on the horizon, Titus rushes to the fugitive's aid...