With its pretty thatched roof and rustic English setting, Rose Cottage is the picture of tranquility. But when Kate Herrick returns to her childhood home, she discovers a web of intrigue as tangled as the rambling roses in its garden.

It is the summer of 1947. Kate, widowed in the war and settled in London, travels to Rose Cottage to retrieve some family papers hidden there years before by her grandmother. The tiny dwelling seems much as she remembers it, but she discovers the papers are missing, and the village is alive with rumors of mysterious night time prowlers, ghosts, and witchcraft.

Seeking the truth about her humble beginnings, Kate uncovers a story of family bitterness, jealousy, and revenge. But all finally ends well as Kate achieves a reconciliation with her mother who was thought to be dead, learns the identity of her real father, and finds romance where she least expected it.