To World War Two battlefield casualties evacuated from bloody Pacific beachheads to the clean white beds of hospital ships, the Navy nurses who care for them seem angels indeed. For young war widow Ensign Anna Donovan, however, the unrelenting stresses of this duty soon begin to chip away at her morale, eventually revealing a side of her that is anything but angelic. Far from family, friends and fiancé, she’s horrified to find herself drawn to Mark Whitmore, a charismatic but married chaplain. Eventually her need for respite from the endless stream of young men torn apart in this enormous conflict overrides both her principles and her loyalty to Jim, back home in Maine. As the war winds down, she soothes her conscience by rationalizing that all that really matters is that she performed her duty steadfastly and honorably. The rest - the private, personal falls from grace - will fade when she resumes her interrupted civilian life with the man she truly loves. Or is this a delusion? When she leaves USS Compassion, the friends she served with, and the chaplain who shared her passion, will she really find that bright post-war future so many young men died to win for her?
