Setting

It is the 1950s. A small seaside town in Suffolk, England.

Plot Overview

Chris, a young boy just entering manhood, together with his friend, witness a couple making love in a field. A girl is later reported missing and the police attend the boys' school appealing for help. His friend persuades Chris they should not report what they had seen.

Developments

The disappearance develops into a murder investigation and, to Chris's distress, the police arrest the wrong man. The impending break-up of his parents' marriage and his mother's mental breakdown are the background to Chris's awakening interest in the opposite sex.

Climax

His increasing guilt over the failure to report what he knows to be vital evidence in the murder investigation finally brings about a violent denouement.