The spirited and impulsive Charlotte Heywood moves from her rural home to Sanditon, a fishing village attempting to reinvent itself as a seaside resort.

Samuel, a Russian-born Jewish inventor who specialises in the development of hearing aids, is tasked with a secret mission by MI5 to use his technological expertise to contribute to western Cold War efforts. Following the tensions of the space race and the first hydrogen bomb test, Samuel’s efforts factor in to the emergence of the modern world.