| Director | Jessica Swale |
|---|---|
| Budget | £850,000 |
| Box office | $1.1 million |
In 1940 Alice Lamb, who is working on her typewriter, lives in a cottage by the seaside in Kent. She has lived in the village since before the start of WWII, during which time she tolerated the harassment by local children who thought she was a witch because she was a loner.
As part of the war effort, the brusque and reclusive writer is entrusted with the care of a young boy, Frank, who has been evacuated from London where it is unsafe. Alice had not volunteered to be a host and does not want to care for him as she fears it will interfere with her work researching mythology and folklore, but reluctantly agrees to let him stay believing that he has nowhere else to go and she will be able to be rid of him in a week.
As she begins to accept Frank's presence, she recalls her relationship with Vera, a fellow student at university who wanted to be a novelist and with whom she fell in love. Vera breaks Alice's heart when she decides to end their relationship not because their lesbianism was considered taboo, but because she has a strong desire to be a mother and it would not be possible with Alice.
Alice and Frank start to bond after he takes an interest in her scholarly work and she explains Fata Morgana mirages to him. She tells him about The Summerland, the pagan idea of the afterlife that existed all around them. However, at the end of their week together she is still willing to let him be transferred to another home. Alice changes her mind and decides to keep Frank with her after learning that moving him to a new family will require his moving to another village and school.
The day before Frank's birthday Alice is informed that his father has been killed in battle and she must break the news to him. As she was devastated by the similar loss of her father, Alice decided to delay telling Frank. While preparing a permanent room for him to stay in, she finds photographs of Frank and his parents in his scrapbook and is shocked to discover that his mother is Vera. At the same time, during an argument with a school friend, Frank finds out that his father has died. Hurt and angry because Alice had not told him, Frank runs away to be with his mother in London. Alice goes after him, and the two arrive in time to find his home destroyed and in flames after a bombing. Alice and Frank spend the night in an air raid shelter and head back to Kent the following morning.
While driving back to Kent, Frank yells at Alice to stop, jumps out and runs to the sea. Alice follows him onto the rocks, pleading with him that it is not safe and to come back. Frank shouts at her that she knew about his father's death and did not tell him. Distraught, Alice tells him that she wanted to but did not know how to and apologises. Frank says that he saw his father in Summerland. When he turns around, he slips and falls backward into the water. He flails under the water until Alice swims out to where he is and manages to rescue him. After helping him get out, both of them gasp and cough up water profusely.
The next morning, Alice brings Frank breakfast which he initially refuses. Alice reveals how she lost her father years earlier, and that she struggled to come to terms with it. She then shows him the room she prepared for him, comforting him when he becomes upset looking through some family photos.
When they return home a few days later, they find Vera waiting for them. She had not been home at the time of the bomb attacks. Vera confesses to having engineered the selection of Alice as the host for Frank because she knows that if anything were to happen to her, Alice would take care of him.
Back in the present time, Alice is in the process of completing her manuscript when Vera suddenly interrupts her. Having reunited some time ago, the two now live together. As they stroll along the beach, an adult Frank, who has come for a visit, joins them. Frank discovers the dedication in Alice's manuscript, and to his surprise, it is dedicated to him.