Another gripping saga from the queen of Southampton, combining the passion and power of novels by Josephine Cox and Martina Cole Life is far from comfortable for Elsa Carter, working on a fruit and veg stall in the seedy but colourful area of Southampton's docklands in the 1930s. She also has her drunken father to deal with and constantly struggles to shield her mother from his violent rages. But, despite everything, Elsa is a cheery, spirited girl and she finds comfort in her fiance, Peter Adams, a young reporter burning with ambition. When one day Elsa is drawn into the booth of an old gypsy, a fortune-teller called Fanny Braxton, she instantly senses the woman's malicious nature and is sceptical of anything Fanny tells her. But she still finds herself troubled by the encounter and apprehensive for the future. And, in her search for happiness, Elsa soon discovers that even those closest to her are not to be trusted...