a freespirited university student marias life stretches before her like a wonderful adventure it is new zealand in the midseventies and maria wants to make music serve the lord and spread her wings far beyond the safe familiarity of her homeland then the unthinkable happens a callous act resulting in an impossible choice that shapes the rest of her life heartbroken and in need of a miracle maria seeks absolution as a carmelite nun in the dark silent cloisters of the palmarian catholic church one of the worlds most secretive and controversial religious orders this is the true story of one womans journey from the sweeping coastlines of new zealand to the barren plains of southern spain from youthful hope to deep despair and from sin to reparation