In the second book in this widely discussed trilogy, main character Legia, staggers from her disastrous first marriage into hard times. She struggles with very little money to support her two children while gaining a toehold in the banking sector. Her career goes well, and she meets a man who desperately wants the stability of marriage after harrowing experiences and perilous escape from war-torn Angola. She agrees and for a while she finds happiness. But it is short-lived. When her mother-in-law travels from Portugal to live with them, the marriage quickly deteriorates. Her illusions of happiness are shattered. She fights for her children in the law courts. A trip to Portugal reveals surprising family secrets. Legia grows wiser and finally, when she is at her wits end, the sort of happiness that eluded her miraculously arrives