One month after the end of World War II, amid the jubilation in the streets of France, are throngs of people stunned by the recovery work ahead. Every bridge, road and rail line, every church and school and hospital, has been destroyed. Disparate factions—from Communists, to Resistance fighters, to federalists, to those who supported appeasement of the Nazis—must somehow unite to rebuild their devastated country.
Asher lost his family during the war, and in revenge served as an assassin in the Resistance. Burdened by grief and guilt, he wanders through the blasted countryside, shocked by what has become of his life. When he arrives at the Château Guerin, all he seeks is a decent meal. Instead he finds a sanctuary, an oasis. The people there are every bit as damaged as he is, but they are calming themselves and recovering, inch by inch, by turning sand into glass, and glass into windows for the bombed cathedrals of France.
It's a volatile place, and these former warriors manage their trauma in different ways. But they are helped by women full of courage and affection. Asher turns out to have a gift for making windows. He decides to hide the fact that he is Jewish so the devout Catholics who own the château will not expel him. As the secrets of the château's residents become known one by one, they experience more heated conflict and greater challenges. And as Asher kindles his talents for glasswork, his recovery will lead the way for them all.