A NEGLECTED SECOND SON, Edward Rochester struggles in the shadow of his elder brother, whose jealous intrigues poison everything he touches. When Edward’s long-cherished love and hopes for happiness with a childhood sweetheart are crushed by those intrigues, he is devastated.

Seeking to blot out the bitter failure, Edward takes the path laid out by his father and flees England. Certain he will never return, he embarks upon what becomes a fifteen year odyssey driven by the hope he might one day find such a love again.

But when one disappointment after another weighs him down until he is resigned to a loveless existence, Edward finds himself returning to the family home he had once forsaken, never imagining that what awaits him will change his life—forever.

Edward Rochester, a world-weary but wealthy man, has searched the world for love, in vain. Resigned to a loveless existence, he returns to England a defeated man.

But an unexpected encounter with a remarkable young woman – Jane Eyre – upends his world. As governess to his little ward, she is a mere dependent in his household.

In the weeks following his return, they meet a few times, and he finds her full of whimsical contrasts. He is intrigued and wants to learn more. As he regales her with tales of his adventures abroad, Jane listens without judgment. He finds himself freely confiding his youthful mistakes. All except one. One which changed the course of his life, and remains a secret. A secret known to just two other people in the whole world.

Then, late one night, Edward is astounded to discover that Jane’s daring and courage has saved his life, rescuing him from a mysterious fire, set in his own room while he was asleep! In the intimacy of the aftermath, they draw close, and he can deny his feelings no longer–he is desperately in love with her.