In 1952 ambitious industrialist Charles Freeman whisks naive young Mary off her feet and marries her. They move into the big house overlooking the town where Charles' engineering factory dominates the landscape and, in quick succession, three sons (Simon, James and Robert) and a daughter (Alice) are born. Exhausted by motherhood and disillusioned with marriage to a man whose greatest romantic passion is reserved for his factory, sensitive wayward Mary seeks solace in poetry and drink. The marriage stumbles, the children swing between the heady sunshine of joy and the pain of neglect. Within a few years the family is fractured by the tragedy of Mary's suicide and each of the siblings sets out to find their place in a world stained by events from their childhood. The oldest son, Simon, initially strives to please and imitate his father by going into the family business. James is trapped by his mother's favor!