Cette série relate le parcours de vie d'une femme qui a grandi dans les dures réalités du XIXe siècle. Ses rêves d'une vie meilleure et d'évasion des moments difficiles sont constamment mis à l'épreuve par l'adversité et le destin. Les récits explorent la force de la famille, la résilience et la lutte pour la survie face à des tragédies imprévues. C'est une histoire poignante d'espoir et de persévérance à travers des époques de changements sociaux significatifs.
Brought up on her parents' smallholding in Jarrow in the harsh years of the 1870s, Rose dreams of a world beyond the grime of the town, a world glimpsed at a fairytale wedding at Ravensworth as a child. Capturing the heart of steelworker William a better life is in reach. But tragedy strikes and Rose must save her young family from destitution.
To escape her possessive and drunken step-father, Kate is sent away from teaming Jarrow to work on the Ravensworth Estate. She is soon attracting the attention of charming, headstrong Alexander and dares to dream of a future with him. But when Kate discovers herself pregnant and alone she must return to face the wrath of her step-father.
Rebellious Catherine (Kitty) McMullen, resentful of her new step-father and yearning to escape impoverished Jarrow, determines to educate herself.Soon streetwise Kitty is a ghost of the past and the well-spoken, well-read Catherine leaves the north-east to follow her dreams.But she encounters hardship and heartbreak on the road to self-discovery.