London, 1940. Bombs are falling and 10-year-old Margaret Rose survives a deadly raid, but her family home is destroyed. In faraway Townsville in Queensland, her aunt is ready to take her in, although her 11-year-old cousin Lizzie is not so sure. But first there is a long and dangerous voyage to a strange country, also at war. Margaret Rose knows it is not going to be easy, and Lizzie is not about to make it any easier.