A passionate woman trapped in a sterile marriage, Sarah Miles is immediately and irresistibly attracted to brooding novelist Maurice Bendrix when they meet at a party given by Sarah’s worthy but unexciting civil servant husband, Henry. They begin a passionate, illicit and sexually liberating love affair. But during the Blitz in London, Bendrix’s house is hit by a bomb while the couple are in bed, and he is nearly killed. Inexplicably and without warning, Sarah breaks off the relationship. As for Bendrix, he is utterly bereft.

Two years later, on a rainy night in 1946, Bendrix has a chance meeting with Henry. Bendrix’s obsession with Sarah is rekindled, and he succumbs to his jealousy and arranges to have her followed. Haunted by passionate memories of their affair, he re-enters her life, confronting once more the consuming love they had for each other. In a stunning surprise admission, he will learn the reason for its annihilation.