Zuleika, the dazzling offspring of a curate and a circus-rider, is the grand-daughter of the Warden of Judas College, Oxford. On her visit to the city during Eights Week, her beauty wreaks havoc. Attracted only 'to men who would not bow down to her', Zuleika is disappointed in her quest for one whom she could adore. To a man, the undergraduates fall madly in love with her, including the Duke of Dorset, a splendid young Apollo who seems the likeliest candidate. His vow to lay down his life for her has unpredictable consequences.