The Second World War has finally come to a close. Birmingham is welcoming home its menfolk, and a new chapter is beginning in Rachel Booker's life. Her husband has returned, and the family that struggled for survival throughout the uncertain war years is now together. But family life settles into a routine and Rachel, unsatisfied, starts to yearn for more. Melly, Rachel's eldest daughter, is a child of the war. She grew up in the bombed-out streets of Birmingham and has never known anything other than the hungry ration years and supporting her mother and younger brother Tommy.