For Josie Flynn, life with her mother in the heart of Liverpool was all she ever wanted—until Hitler's bombs ripped her childhood apart. She was sent to live with her miserable aunt and uncle, and then went to Barefoot House as the paid companion of an elderly, cantankerous woman who eventually became her friend. She thought she found happiness in New York with the handsome, charismatic Jack Coltrane, but was soon back in Liverpool, alone. As she renews old loves and former friendships, and reflects on her time at Barefoot House, she embarks upon a career which is as unlikely as it is successful.