Publisher's Synopsis
It is 1946 and the Temperleys and the Chancellors are old neighbours, living on the south coast of England. Marius Temperley has recently left the army and is struggling to fit into civilian life. His quick-tempered and passionate sister, Julia, has been running the family business since her father's death. When seventeen-year-old Topaz Brooke visits her cousins, Jack and Will Chancellor, for the first time since the outbreak of war, she finds that a great deal has changed. Both brothers are in love with Julia Temperley. As the years go by, family secrets are revealed, and the Temperleys and the Chancellors learn that passion can be both destructive and redemptive.
