Ireland 1839 - and the Feeney family is split asunder when the Big Wind hits. Sixty-five years later, in Liverpool, Ada Docherty gives birth to twins in her tiny house in Evangelist Court. She has no choice but to make Ellen, her eldest daughter, bring them up, for she must work to feed seven hungry mouths. In Dublin, Maggie McVeigh's lot is even harder, for she sleeps on straw in a tumbledown tenement. When a local woman, Mrs Nolan, needs someone to look after her sons, Maggie takes on the job and finds security and comfort - and love, too, with the eldest boy, Liam. With the outbreak of war, life changes dramatically. Ellen, newly in love, follows her young man to France - but does he share her feelings? A tragedy sends Liam off to the trenches, whilst at home wartime shortages and a constant stream of bad news affect both families. But a surprise awaits them...