Helene is a shipwreck survivor washed ashore near a small English village. There, she is swept off her feet by widowed pastor Edmund and the two soon marry, with the puritanical Edmund believing his bride to be untouched by another man. But it seems that she has a history, and a dark one at that.

Helene must discover a talent to present to the visiting Brother Joseph.

In the wake of Bird Raymond's death, for which Helene is blamed, the shipwreck survivor attempts to adjust to life as a pastor's wife. Negotiating devious Dorothy's wicked schemes grows increasingly tricky when she's also blamed for the deteriorating health of Mother Mathilde.

Edmund learns of his late mother's intention to leave him her estate on the condition that he fathers an heir within a year of her death. Cue a series of fervent baby-making attempts with a somewhat questionable technique. Meanwhile, Dorothy cranks her spying up a notch.

With time ticking on and still no sign of an heir, Edmund announces to his congregation that he and Helene are to leave Hunderby for a new life in Fiji.

News of Helene's pregnancy brings a celebratory mood to Hunderby, before Geoff's future is placed in jeopardy.

A wealth of secrets are unravelled - not least the origin of bubbly milk - and everything that was known at Hunderby is turned upside down.