Set in Venice in the late 19th century and based on Henry James' eponymous novella, The Aspern Papers is a story of obsession, grandeur lost, and dreams of Byronic adventures. Ambitious editor Morton Vint is fascinated by the Romantic poet Jeffrey Aspern and by his icon's short and wildly romantic life. Having travelled from America to Venice, he is determined to get his hands on the letters Aspern wrote to his beautiful lover and muse, Juliana Bordereau.