Plot
Marilyn Vine, from suburban Connecticut, is grieving the tragic death of her son Dale, which has caused a deep emotional rift in her marriage to Greg. This is because he died on a motorbike his father had gifted him on his 15th birthday. Overwhelmed by this loss and unable to reconnect with Greg, she seeks solitude and a change of environment.
Meanwhile in Dublin, Ria Lynch's world collapses when her husband Danny devastates her as he is leaving her for the younger Bernadette, who is pregnant by him. Stunned by the betrayal, Ria is desperate to escape the pain and uncertainty of her crumbling home life.
By chance, Marilyn rings Danny—whom Greg once met at a business function—and proposes he find her a house for a two-month exchange. Ria agrees by offering her own. With the swap, each hopes the distance will help them find clarity.
In Dublin Marilyn, wanting to be alone, does not devulge the reason for her retreat. She finds quiet comfort in the garden and in the company of local restaurateur Colm. A friend of Ria's, he is upkeeping her vegetable garden over the summer. Ria's best friend Rosemary convinces Marilyn to accept Colm's invitation to his restaurant.
There, Marilyn and Rosemary are soon convinced to join a large group, which includes Danny and the pregnant Bernadette. The boisterous crowd make Marilyn uncomfortable. Rosemary is pressed to sing, but before she can finish Ria's daughter Annie protests that they are carrying on without Ria, and that Bernadette, the woman who split up her parents, is there at all. Uncomfortable, Marilyn leaves.
In Connecticut, Ria tries to rebuild her confidence, takes a job cooking, and bonds with Greg’s brother Andy. After dinner together, she invites him to Irish coffee. He proposes strings-free sex, although they are mutually attracted, she cannot follow through.
In Dublin, Mona McCarthy catches Danny and Rosemary kissing, and it is revealed that they have a long, secret history, predating Ria. Barney McCarthy's company Tara Holdings, Danny's employer, goes under so he is informed that his house Tara Road was used as collateral.
Danny lets himself into the house, startling Marilyn. Saying he is seeking some papers, she insists that Ria OK it, but she is unreachable. Danny demands the car keys, explaining he needs to sell it, but Marilyn holds firm, both retrieving the house key and not allowing him to take the car she is paying the insurance on.
Ria finally finds out about Dale's accidental death through the neighbors when Dale's friend Hubie stops by. Investigating in his room, she finds the video of the accident, as it had happened at his birthday party. Meanwhile, Marilyn accidentally comes across Rosemary and Danny together. Deciding to warn Ria, when she picks up she gives her condolences about Dale, so Marilyn changes her mind.
Ria's kids come over to see their cat before their US trip. Annie asks several direct questions, so Marilyn surprisingly opens up for the first time about Dale's death. Brian comforts her by assuring that Dale must be looking down on her from heaven. Danny later barges into the house for its papers.
Hubie stops by the Vines', where Ria is throwing a surprise party for Greg, to ask for forgiveness. Greg does so without hesitation, then the teen meets Ria's recently arrived Annie and Brian. Ria reveals that Marilyn opened up to the kids about Dale, so Greg flies to Dublin and they reconcile.
Danny flies to see Ria and the kids in the US. He sleeps with her, but in the morning news comes that Bernadette has gone into labor. Before Danny rushes off, he tells the stunned Ria that they are losing the house as the company used it as collateral. Realising he never loved her, she shatters vases as she tries to hit him with them.
Back in Dublin, Marilyn and Mona work together to recover Tara Road. Not only is Danny's affair with Rosemary revealed, but so is Barney's long term one with Polly, which Mona demands he end.
At film end, both women have found renewed strength and a clearer sense of purpose, ultimately returning home changed by the experience and better equipped to move forward.
