This is a richly evocative saga set between the wars. As the daughter of a narrowboat man, Beth Dawson has grown up on the network of canals that criss-cross England from Bristol to Birmingham. In the years following the First World War, the jobs of the boatmen are threatened by the expansion of the roads and the railways. Discontent is simmering, and the workers' union, led by Anthony Wesley, is stirring up trouble.Like Beth, Abigail Gatehouse is determined to be a part of the drama that is unfolding. But Abigail is the daughter of the carrying company's owner, and from a very different background. The two young women, both enamoured of glamorous Anthony Wesley, are soon caught up in events that are fast spiralling out of control...