Retiring from a life in the media, journalist Martha Nelson finds herself feeling lost and struggles to adapt to her new, quieter life. When a local history group asks her to compile a book about her village, Martha stumbles across the dilapidated ruin of Lapston Manor and her curiosity is piqued. There is talk of an unexpected death, a change of ownership and a mysterious shadow of a woman called Madame Roussell. The journalist in Martha is intrigued.
As World War Two draws to a close, the residents of Lapston are visited by the mysterious and very beautiful Cecile Roussell, who has come from Paris to visit the home of her beloved 'Henri'. Henry's family and their companion, Maxwell Carrick, are in awe of her but all is not what it seems and the family is torn apart by the very visitor they welcome to their midst.
The two stories cleverly intertwine as Martha searches for the truth, but what risk will this pose to her own marriage and future happiness?