A woman and her daughter are stranded in a rambling old house deep in the countryside of County Tyrone. Their economic circumstances are hopeless, but it is friends and former business associates who pose the greatest threat to their happiness.

1980s Derry: Goretti Friel, one of a spirited group of teenage friends, meets Ciarán at her Irish language class, and romance blossoms. When he is arrested and imprisoned by the British army, Goretti is dismayed to find herself pregnant. Left to deal with the crisis alone, she is tormented by the conflicts of her growing belly and the influence of a Catholic upbringing.