For young Ethie Coulter the sudden death of her mother in strange circumstances is a shock almost too painful to bear.  Her dad was already withdrawn; now he becomes silent, drinking too much and leaving Ethie and her brother Kipper to fend for themselves.

Ethie’s father was one of two thousand Canadian soldiers sent to the Far East six weeks before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. Ethie was born after his return from the war, so she never knew him as the open-hearted, loving husband he used to be. Ethie senses that whatever happened to him back then had something to do with her mother’s subsequent death.

Inquisitive and fearless, she is determined to work her way to the truth and help her father come to terms with the past.