York, 1577: Hawise Aske smiles at a stranger in the market, and sets in train a story of obsession and sibling jealousy, of love and hate and warped desire. Drowned as a witch, Hawise pays a high price for that smile. Four and a half centuries later, Grace Trewe is trying to outrun her memories of the Boxing Day tsunami. Her stay in York is meant to be brief, but she discovers that time can twist and turn in ways she never imagined. Drawn inexorably into Hawise's life, Grace finds that this time she cannot move on.