Harriet Pringle is newly arrived in Athens. Having fled Nazi-occupied Rumania, she anxiously awaits news of her husband Guy, trapped in the spoilt city of Bucharest.

When the young couple are reunited, in the sunlight of a capital still at peace, they have little idea of the problems still to come. Greece is invaded by the Italians and work is scarce; hardly the best time for a marriage to flourish. Guy, as ever, is engrossed in his work and the problems of others, and when Harriet is diverted by a handsome young officer, their marriage seems doomed.

But when Greece is defeated, and as Europe disintegrates around them, Guy and Harriet are forced to find a new strength in a crumbling world of turmoil.