Golden-haired, sunny-natured Amy, youngest and dearest of Annie Flanagan's lively brood of thirteen, is the apple of her mother's eye. But with the outbreak of World War II, the Flanagan family is torn apart, shaken from their crowded nest in London's East End.

While the young ones are evacuated from the war-torn capital - the girls to Devon and the boys to a school in the Midlands - Joe is soon made a sergeant, fighting in France. Billy volunteers for the Army Transport, and young Dan fulfils his dreams and joins the RAF.

The war brings tragedy - even the old home is in ruins, bombed and shell-splintered. It's Amy, with her fierce courage and determination, who must pull the family back together. But when a man full of wicked charm and Cockney banter walks into her life and wins her heart, more turbulent years are sure to follow.