Set in contemporary Alberta, The Wake is the story of the love affair that blossoms between a well-meaning Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer and a young Métis woman. The Métis have a strong sense of community, but there is also a feeling of separateness defined by racial origins and economics. In this atmosphere, the romance offers a new sense of hope. Then, during a dark winter's night on a frozen lake, something happens to change the lovers' lives forever.