Will she ever be anything more than an East End girl? Cissy Farmer longs to escape her life in London's Docklands where times are hard and money is tight. And when she meets the debonair Langley Makepeace, her dream seems within reach. But the price of belonging in Langley's brittle, sophisticated world could be much higher than Cissy ever imagined. Torn between Langley and her gentle childhood sweetheart, Eddie Bennet, she is forced to gamble on her future chance of happiness, a decision that will change her life forever.

Forced to choose between her family and her heart, Nora decides to marry the man she loves - even if it means losing her sister.When the First World War breaks out, Nora must fight to hold her family together through the challenges and tragedies to come.