Though the 1960s herald flower power, race riots and the Vietnam War, the village of Westerbank in the west of Scotland remains curiously untouched. As nights draw in, men stand on a corner at the hearet of the village, smoking and sharing the same jokes and stores that have been passed on for generations. Everyone knows what's happening in the homes of others. Westerbank isn't a place for secrets.
At least, that's what people thought. But when handsome hell-raiser Joe McBride returns after 20 years in America, the village comes alive with whispers. Just why did Joe leave so suddenly all that time ago? And why has he come back? Joe's homecoming strikes fear into the heart of his childhood friend Frankie Flaherty, who's spent the last twenty years trying to forget the secret Joe left behind - and hide it from the wife he adores. As for Joe, he's determined to atone for the sins of the past, but it will take tragedy before he is finally forgiven.