Set in the fictional Worcestershire village of Sytchford, during the summer of 1944, The Sytchford Spy tells how the arrival of a young Gypsy girl and an Italian prisoner of war alters the lives of the villagers. When Florence Lovesmith's caravan arrives one evening in May, she soon becomes friends with village children, Violet and Ash Sinton, and their older sister Claire. The arrival of Salvatore, an Italian POW, creates tensions within the community and within the Sinton family in particular, as he and Claire become more than just friends. While the children are occupied building rafts, making camps and generally having fun, the war is taking its toll and on the home front; rationing and food shortages are getting more and more severe. Violet is sure that someone is hoarding food supplies and is determined to discover who it is. When danger threatens one of the children, a series of events is set in motion which challenges the family's conceptions and unveils the truth, not only about Claire and Salvatore but also about others in the small community.