France, 1755. William and Jeanne Neilson, together at last, are living in the deep country and are happier than either ever expected to be. Their children, the foundling Marie-Ange and young William, are growing up. Jeanne devotes her mornings to scientific research while William has exchanged soldiering for agricultural improvement.

Yet both are restless. Jeanne, herself married to a poor Scotsman outlawed in Great Britain, is determined her adoptive daughter shall have a throne. Marie-Ange's grace and rich dowry have caught the eyes of princes all over Europe. But Marie-Ange's heart is firmly elsewhere.

William, still haunted by the loss of his men at the battle of Culloden in 1746, dreams of one last fight to purge his shame.

Then war breaks out again with England, and the family is torn apart and scattered into the unknown.

'An epic voyage well worth taking' Telegraph