Cara Gayle is one of life's pleasers. A young, country school-teacher in 1960s Ireland, she spends her life looking after her philandering husband, Oliver, and her pious mother, Maggie. When Cara's seventh wedding anniversary reveals her husband's latest infidelity, Cara decides it's time to do something for herself. Offered the chance to escape her loveless marriage for a few weeks by accompanying her parents to a family wedding in Lake Savannah, upstate New York, she's only too keen to accept. The gorgeous scenery and the relaxed, American approach to life make Cara more aware than ever of how narrow and unfulfilling her life in Tullamore has become. When she meets Jameson Carroll, a reclusive artist who lives with his young son on the shores of the lake, Cara embarks on a once-in-a-lifetime passionate affair. Yet in the background, her return to Ireland and life with Oliver looms. Can Cara Gayle find the courage, at long last, to finally please herself?