After the death of her husband, the well-off widow Juliane Willbrand sinks into a great void. Her efforts to return to her old job as a librarian after twenty years prove futile until prison warden Schober gives her a chance. The challenge as head of the prison library gives Juliane energy and new courage to face life. She falls in love with the artistically talented prisoner Albert Tieck, who was sentenced to seven years behind bars after an arson in which his wife died. When Albert apparently uses a prison leave to escape, Juliane's world falls apart - until she discovers Albert's secret.