When shy young Bernice meets Will Webber in her parents' drapery store, she can have no way of knowing that the love that grows between them will be the spark that ignites generations of heartbreak, overlapping layers of family dysfunction, and star-crossed love affairs. As the years go on, an unconventional family evolves, which will become beset by drama, intrigue, romance, violence, and even horror and grief as a revenge plot threatens to destroy their most innocent and vulnerable members. From the siblings separated by war; to the teenaged girl fallen into bad circumstances; to the conniving, exploitative men; the orphaned children, and one mother yearning for a child while another abandons hers...these are complex people with rich lives. There's triumph, sorrow, and mounting jeopardy through a multi-generational family saga in the tradition of The Thorn Birds. Bernice features a varied cast of characters, onion-skin layers of unfolding revelations, and a warm, beating heart of family love at its core.