Guildford, England, 1826. When six-year-old William stumbles onto a shocking scene, his innocence is shattered. Catapulted into maturity and burdened with a heavy secret, how can young William stay safe and placate his domineering father, Jonathan Turner? Meanwhile, the steam power revolution provides the family business with opportunities and perils, and Jonathan struggles to control bouts of rage while he adapts to the changing times. When a mysterious Scottish brewer arrives with investment opportunities that promise to secure the family's future, it is William's older sister, Anne, who suspects all is not what it seems.

Seventeen-year-old Anne's life is complicated by her love for navy officer Robert South – a man beyond her station, but perhaps not beyond her reach. Her brilliant mind and her curious, caring nature may hold keys to resolving the family's troubles. From ruptured relationships and financial ruin to redemption and transcendent romance, this epic novel follows the fortunes and adversities of the Turner family as they wrestle with lives upended by technological and social change.