On the brink of World War II, who can you truly trust?

Against the simmering tensions of summer 1939, a group of evacuees flee Vienna for the sanctuary of Newtown House in Ireland. Haunted by their pasts and those they have left behind, Gisela Müller and Hans Schmitt struggle to settle into their new, rural Irish home.

Tasked with being a companion to the precocious and spoiled Nola de Freyne, Gisela misses her previous scholarly life terribly. Meanwhile, Hans pines for his true love, Anja.

With the surprise arrival of a German secret agent to Ireland, Gisela and Nola find themselves caught up in a plot of espionage and IRA politics that will change Hans’ and their lives forever.

But who is the true Emerald Spy? And what exactly is it that they seek at Newtown House?

1973: Californian journalist Ellie Morgan sets out on a mission to research the life of Adele Astaire, famed 1920s dancer and comedienne, older sister to Fred Astaire. She uncovers a wealth of material from the people who knew her.

1905: Eight-year-old Adele Austerlitz moves from her humble home in Omaha, Nebraska, with her five-year-old brother Fred, to New York to begin training at a professional stage academy. They undertake a gruelling schedule of rehearsals and touring, setting the foundations of what will be the most famous and sought-after dance partnership on 1920s Broadway.

1928: Patricia Ryan, a no-nonsense Irish girl takes a job as a housemaid at Lismore Castle in County Waterford, Ireland.

All of their lives will intersect, weaving the tale of one of the most famous women of her time – charismatic entertainer, celebrity, fashion icon, muse to artists and writers, and favourite of royalty.

Wanted, a respectable woman to care for a motherless child.

When William D. Thomas’s wife dies in childbirth, he places an advertisement in his local newspaper seeking a nanny for this newborn child.

He is thankful when an experienced nanny arrives at 43 Laurence Street and takes over from his frazzled housekeeper Mrs. McHugh.

Mrs McHugh confides in her bedridden friend Betty, who has a bird’s eye view of all the happenings on Laurence Street, that the Nanny is not all she seems. Betty begins her own investigation into the mysterious woman.

When the bodies of twin babies are discovered buried in a back garden, by a family who have moved from their tenement home into a country cottage, a police investigation begins.

But it is Betty who holds the key to discovering who the Nanny really is … and the reason she came to 43 Laurence Street.

Molly Thomas is a feisty, independent soul, born on the Winter Solstice. At every stage of her life she has faced troubles.

As a young woman her family are evicted from their home at Christmas. Molly swears vengeance on the jealous neighbour and land agent responsible, Flann Montgomery.

Then in 1896 her baby son is taken from his pram. Molly searches the streets for Oliver. The police are called but her baby is gone.

Why does trouble seem to follow Molly? And will she ever find out what happened to her child?

December Girl is a tale of family bonds, love, revenge and murder.