1950s Liverpool: In the tightly knit Irish Catholic community of the Four Streets, two girls are growing up. One is motherless, and hated by the cold woman who is determined to take her dead mother's place. Will her beloved father wake up to what is happening before it is too late? The other is hiding a dreadful secret which she dare not let slip to anyone, lest it rips the heart out of the community. And yet, how long can she possibly live with it? Laughing, grieving, hoping for better things - all this the people of the Four Streets can do together. But how will they cope when a betrayal at the very heart of their world comes to light?