In 1920, after leaving their home in Russia, the brothers Samuel and Isaac Harris arrive on the shores of America. They each carry a battered brown suitcase containing their only possessions. The following year, Yetta, Samuel's bride, follows him, bringing with her his mother's silver candlesticks.

In 1945, Helena Jablonski, having survived the ravages of war in Europe and the loss of her family, sets out on a courageous journey to reach Palestine. She is joined by Sofia, her childhood friend, whom she meets up with after she's liberated. Drawn into a world she could not have imagined in the dark days of her internment in the concentration camps, Helena meets the motherly Rachel, with whom she forms an instant and lasting bond, and Max Harris, the young American volunteer who will define her destiny.

As past and present collide, new friendships are formed and characters reappear who will bring her face to face with the hard truth of forgiveness and the transformative power of love.

Helena's extraordinary journey takes her from Poland to Paris, New York to the Middle East, and to the winelands of Paarl in South Africa. She will linger in your memory long after you have turned the last page.