Rose McNulty, a once vibrant and lively beauty, has spent the majority of her adult life confined to a mental hospital in Ireland. When new chief psychiatrist Dr. Grene arrives, he takes a keen interest in Rose. He finds a hidden memoir, written over the course of decades by Rose, that unravels the mystery of her wartime love, incarceration, and the tale of her passionate, yet tortured, life.

After his premature daughter is born and placed on a ventilator, Hurricane Katrina strikes New Orleans and the father must find a way to keep his child alive while waiting for someone to rescue them from a dark hospital.