1938. Sadie travels to Europe from South Africa with dreams of becoming a ballerina – but when war breaks out, she is working at the Bal Tabarin, a lively Parisian music hall. As the Nazis march in, the city is no longer safe for Jews like Sadie – until a fellow dancer named Frederic offers her a lifeline: a ballroom partnership that will allow her to hide in the spotlight. Together, Sadie and Frederic dazzle audiences across occupied Europe – and Sadie secretly uses her new cover to work with the Resistance. But when an old friend comes to her for help, Sadie begins a dangerous dance that takes her to the brink of losing everything.
2012. Miriam travels to New York to sort out the affairs of her great-aunt Esther – and to escape her own secrets. Lost in grief, Miriam begins to piece together from Esther’s notebooks the forgotten history of the Bal Tabarin, and in particular the story of a dancer who risked her life to help others in the midst of war. With the help of a handsome young man who opens up the dance halls and nightclubs of this electric city for her, Miriam realises that Esther’s story has been left for her to finish – but will she find the courage to find the answers and face the past?