Ruth has looked after her brothers for ten years since the death of their parents and believes that her role as head of the family will continue for the rest of her life. With two of her brothers already married and living away she has only her youngest brothers to care for. The arrival of a new, very determined sister-in-law makes change inevitable and Ruth struggles to maintain her superior role. Troubled by problems in her own relationship with the ever-patient Henry, she must recognize her priorities in time to salvage her own chance of love and happiness. Nothing is Forever is a finely drawn portrait of the joys and challenges of close-knit family life, from the much-loved writer of Gull Island and Facing the World.