For fifteen-year-old Hal Ditton and his family, summer has always meant six glorious weeks by the sea. But this year is different - Charley, Hal's sister, is lying in a coma. When the troubled family makes the difficult decision to return to their holiday home without her, Hal finds it harder than anyone to shake off his elder sister's presence. In fact, Hal's mind is crowded with thoughts of Charley, and the events that led to her accident on the beach last summer - thoughts which, he comes to realise, are not entirely his own.