Everyone in the tiny village of Moonfleet lives by the sea one way or another, so it's no surprise when young John Trenchard gets involved in the smuggling trade. Forced to flee England with a price on his head, John little guesses the adventures and trials he will have before he sees Moonfleet again or the change in his fortunes when he does.
In Venice, Frances Croy is working to leave the previous year behind: another novel published to little success, a scathing review she can't quite manage to forget, and, most of all, the real reason behind her self-imposed exile from London: the incident at the Savoy. Sequestered within an aging palazzo, Frankie finds comfort in the emptiness of Venice in winter, in the absence of others. And then Gilly appears.