Ruby Landry is a 15-year-old Cajun girl who lives on the Louisiana bayou. An illegitimate child whose young mother died at her birth, Ruby lives with her Grandmère Catherine. Her Grandpère Jack lives in the swamp, an outcast, drinking and gambling his money away. When Ruby falls in love with Paul Tate, the son of a rich cannery owner, both families disapprove of the relationship. Now Grandmère must reveal the shattering secret she has kept for years. Stunned by these revelations, Ruby is devastated when Grandmère succumbs to a sudden illness, leaving her to seek out her father in his New Orleans mansion. There, in a house of lies, madness and cruel torment, Ruby clings to her memories of Paul to keep her heart alive. For only their love can save her now.