Paris, 1860s. For Mimi Bisset, survival is everything on the cobbled streets of the Paris slums. She tries to forget the pain of losing her daughter Colette: born out of wedlock and forcibly given away to a rich family. But Mimi's world turns upside down after a chance encounter with handsome artist Edouard Manet. Boldly posing for portraits on Manet's chaise longue, Mimi feels a wild freedom - and as Manet teaches her how to layer the vivid paints on canvas herself, a passion grows between them that breaks all the rules...At Manet's side, Mimi is caught up in his world. They dance all night at Paris's new can-can clubs and drink absinthe at masked balls. But one day, strolling by the Seine on her lover's arm, Mimi catches a glimpse of familiar green eyes... it's Colette, with a family who Manet knew all along.Although she's reeling that the man she loved kept such a secret from her, Mimi is filled with hope she'll finally get her daughter back. But when a terrible rumour begins to circulate about Mimi, the only place she has to go is back to the slums. Destitute, hungry and alone, can Mimi clear her name? Or will her heart shatter all over again when she loses her daughter for a second, final time?