For Anna, a carefree and gentle child living in a remote community in the Hebrides, a chance meeting with the mysterious and romantic 'Jimmy Pearl' is to take on a dream-like quality as she grows to womanhood and encounters a hard and often cruel adult world. When Anna's parents die and her brother, with his new wife, sells the family croft, Anna is forced into a loveless marriage to the cold and heartless 'Black Fergus.' But life has surprises in store for them, including the reappearance of 'Jimmy Pearl.'