It is the early days of the phoney war and Alice Chase is awaiting the impending birth of a fifth child. With the arrival of two young evacuees in her sister-in-law's household it seems that the war is finally changing their peaceful lives in the Somerset village of Bramwell.Alice's eldest daughter Rose is head over heels in love and about to join up as a nursing assistant, following her doctor sweetheart. But as the war clouds gather ever more ominously over Europe, new friends and a new man enter Rose's life, making her uncertain which way her life should go.