The fourth of the novels in The Land of the Living sequence finds Amy Parry bereft of her best friend Enid who has died in childbirth, unable to marry Val Gwyn who is seriously ill with TB, and determined not to choose poverty and struggle with her former lover Pen Lewis. When she marries John Cilydd More, companionship and motherhood bring her security and some fulfilment. But her peaceful existence is invaded by the turbulence of striking miners and hunger marchers - and the return of Pen Lewis. The events of the Spanish Civil War come to hold great significance in 1930s Wales, and particularly for Amy.