When three generations of Mahoney women converge from various points in the United States to travel together to Newfoundland it's to trace their roots at the request of the family matriarch, Gran. It should be the trip of a lifetime for this extended family totaling six. Except the youngest member of the entourage, Gwen, starts the journey with knots in her stomach at the thought of spending two weeks with her controlling, disapproving mother, Maude. She isn't making much of a success of adult life and decides the only safe topics of conversation with her mother are religion and politics. Gwen arrives in Canada armed with guide books, ready to serve as guide. As a perpetual student, research is her strength. Only Gran seems hell-bent on avoiding any notable tourist attractions. It's like Gran is on a quest of her own, unwilling to reveal her true intent and frustrating her family as she drags them to the Hall of Records and then to every backwater town on the island. Starting from day one, Gwen is intrigued by the handsome stranger who shows up at their every stop along the way. Her connection to him hits her like a physical pain. He's mysterious, and she can't get a read on him. At each encounter her impression of him shifts like sands on a beach. Against the backdrop of family dynamics, sibling rivalry, the rules of attraction, and long-buried family secrets, Patrick III is a tale told in the quest story tradition. All the characters are on a quest, though some don't know it until they actually find what they've been looking for.