On a remote Shetland island, a mother and daughter’s strained relationship is tested as dark and long-hidden secrets are revealed.

Kirstie exiles herself to the small Shetland island of Yell after yet another torrid affair. She knows she went too far this time—her desperate behaviour caused the breakdown of her lover’s marriage. Taking up residence in her grandparents’ croft, which has lain empty since their deaths, and wanting time to reflect on her life and disastrous relationships, Kirstie begins to write about her obsessive ways.

What she hasn’t realised is that the island is full of relatives she never knew she had. Kirstie has spent her life feeling unloved, hurt, and angry, and has wondered what part this played in the all-consuming manner she is drawn into relationships.

As Kirstie allows some of the local people into her life, she learns of her mother Morag’s tragic history—and begins to reassess her mother’s behaviour. But as Kirstie grapples with her past and begins to settle into her present, Morag decides to visit, throwing Kirstie into turmoil once again—and revealing even more shocking truths.