Imogen Forest’s mother went insane after her birth, her father deserted them and her grandfather, depressive, withdrawn and was still in shock after the war. Her future seemed bleak but her loving grandmother, Elizabeth, was determined she would have a chance in life even if it meant losing her.
Imogen grows up cultured, educated and beautiful, as the ward of a rich divorcée Suzanne Jacobs. She has everything her grandmother sought for her when she took the young Imogen away from her poor family home in the North except for who her real parents really were and where she came from.
When Imogen marries handsome, weak Giles Winner, her life begins to crumble as she finds their marriage is a sham. Rocked by trauma and the knowledge of her family’s terrible heritage, she struggles to rebuild her life, becoming involved with the charismatic MP Tom Wrigley. However, when he and his colleagues indulge in a series of adulterous affairs, Imogen swears she will fight to secure her happiness - at any cost – and to break the chain of hopelessness of her heritage.