In Nazi-occupied Holland, a mother and son fight to survive
A story of a family torn apart by tragedy in the face of the German invasion of Holland, who seek recovery through helping others. Drawing from her own Dutch heritage, the author honours the little-known sacrifices of the Dutch Resistance under Nazi occupation.

When his sister Lotte dies of blood poisoning, Casper Van Doujke leaves his island home of Terschelling for Amsterdam. Blaming himself for Lotte’s death, he studies to be a doctor.

Meanwhile, his mother Elske Van Doujke’s quiet mourning for her daughter is interrupted when the Nazis occupy Terschelling. When a face from her past returns to the island, Elske has a final chance of happiness. But can she take it?

Mother and son join the Dutch Resistance, risking everything for their people as they live through occupation and famine. Elske shelters young Dutchmen and shot-down Allied airmen, while Casper works as a resistance doctor in Amsterdam and falls in love with the fiancée of his resistance cell’s leader.

But when the war threatens those closest to them, Casper and Elske are forced to make impossible choices just to survive.