On a bitter winter night in 1923, farmer Fergus McKenzie loses his beloved Helen in childbirth. Overcome by grief, he shuns his oldest friend, Dr Lachlan, convinced he could have done more to save her. More tragically still, he refuses to see his baby daughter, Shona.
Although sympathetic to poor Fergus, the islanders resolve to gather round to give Shona the care she needs, until her father comes to his senses. But as the years pass, Fergus fails to change his mind, until Shona falls in love with Niall, the doctor's son.