Franz von Heiden, son of a Nazi official and an English mother, comes to England early in 1938 to visit his English cousins — and study them. He is both accepted and entertained by Wynne Braithwaite's family and friends. But the peace and abundance which he finds about him are not what he had expected. These people are not the decadent enemy; their casual talk and happy lives betray no weakness. Franz is disturbed — his reports to his father at home are not what had been expected there. Finding himself in love with Wynne, he is further troubled at the thought of his mother's broken life in Germany. Would Wynne suffer the same slow death? As tremendous events unfold, Franz's dilemma grows increasingly acute, leading to a devastating choice.