The women in Helena Mayricks family have always led secretive and tragic lives, and when Helenas comfortable marriage is devastated by her husbands violent death, it seems that she, too, is locked into the cycle. Helena is invited to research a book on her grandfather, H. Donaldson, the celebrated Edwardian photographer. At first she is reluctant to immerse herself in family history, particularly as Donaldsons relationship with her grandmother, Ruth, is shrouded in mystery and turmoil. But gradually, as the story of enigmatic Ruth and the elusive, passionate Donaldson unfolds, Helena finds that the past, like the present, was shaped by cruel dilemmas and the demands of love...