When violence, rape, and tragedy shatter Marjorie's life, the young woman finds herself pregnant and alone. After giving up her baby for adoption, she marries to escape her northern England hometown, leaving behind a devoted, heartbroken admirer.

Twenty-eight years later, Marjorie's child, Helen, is a reporter for a city paper investigating corruption, a story that leads her to Marjorie's old home. The change of scenery is a welcome relief, coming as it does on the heels of a disastrous relationship with a member of the aristocracy.

Without her realizing it, Helen's assignment brings...