Even on his own wedding day, Dr. Martin Ellingham is all scowls. Then following a calamitous honeymoon, he and Louisa must learn to live together, raise a child and manage two careers. It's a big adjustment for both, especially Martin, who's unaccustomed to clutter and noise. Factor in the Doc's usual string of batty patients; including a hypochondriac, a hoarder, two elderly tattoo artists, and a bumbling constable with a string of self-inflicting injuries, and Martin is soon more ill-tempered than ever. Plus, his crippling blood phobia is back, and his ghastly mother picks a bad time to show up at the Ellinghams' door. With much at stake, Martin turns for advice to his aunt Ruth, perhaps the sanest person in Portwenn - but it may already be too late.