A superbly told historical novel for young people set against the real-life background of Christchurch and rural Hampshire at the time of the Civil War.

The bloody conflict is at its height when Nicholas Lambert's father is shot as a traitor to the King's cause. Young Nicholas flees his home in order to join the Royalist Army, leaving his little sister Katharine behind. Six years later, when the Royalists are finally defeated at Worcester, Nicholas is a fugitive and his life is in danger. Together with two friends he seeks shelter in his old home; it is much changed and so, he thinks, is Katharine.

After the house is searched by Cromwellian soldiers hunting for the young king Charles II, the three fugitives, disguised as servants, make for the Hampshire coast.