Hope is a 36-year-old divorced mother running her family's North Star Bakery in Cape Cod. Having given up law school when she became pregnant, she feels stuck in a life she did not plan. She struggles to manage a tense relationship with her teenage daughter, Annie. She is guarded and fiercely independent, and she actively resists offers of help from others. When her grandmother's memory begins to fail, Hope reluctantly takes on the task of investigating her family's hidden history.

Rose, known to her family as Mamie, is the founder of the North Star Bakery. She is a French immigrant who harbors deep secrets about her early life during World War II and the loved ones she left behind. As her Alzheimer's disease progresses, she struggles to hold onto her most important memories. She actively hides the extent of her decline from her family, but the urgency to uncover the truth drives her to send Hope to Paris.

Gavin is a 29-year-old handyman in Cape Cod who frequently helps Hope with repairs around her house and the bakery. He is compassionate and perceptive. He volunteers his time with Holocaust survivors at a local nursing home. He patiently offers his support to Hope despite her repeated reluctance to accept it.

Annie is Hope and Rob's 12-year-old daughter. She acts out in response to her parents' recent divorce. She often clashes with her mother over daily boundaries. Despite her difficult exterior, she shows deep affection for her grandmother. She becomes highly invested in the mystery of Mamie's past and pushes her mother to find answers.

Alain is an older, widowed man living in the Marais district of Paris. As a young boy, he escaped the Vel d'Hiver roundup that claimed the rest of his family. He is a gentle, honorable man who holds onto the memory of his sister Rose. He provides important context for the mystery surrounding the family's history.

Jacob is a French Jewish man who worked with the resistance during World War II. He is remembered as the great love of Rose's early life in Paris. He urged her family to flee the Nazi occupation. He embodies a profound, sacrificial devotion in Alain and Rose's memories.

Rob is an attorney and Hope's ex-husband. He is insecure and prioritizes his new romantic life over his responsibilities as a father. This neglect causes emotional strain for his daughter. His permissive parenting style directly contradicts Hope's attempts to set boundaries.

Ted is Hope's late grandfather and an American pilot whose plane was shot down during World War II. After meeting Rose in Spain, he brought her to Cape Cod. He served as the headmaster of a local prep school. He is remembered by his granddaughter as an intensely devoted family man.

Josephine is Hope's late mother. She struggled with emotional availability and constantly searched for validation from men. She remained distant from her own daughter. Her death prompted Hope's return to Cape Cod to take over the family business.

Matt is Hope's former high school boyfriend who still lives in the Cape Cod area. He attempts to reconnect with Hope romantically by visiting the bakery. His involvement with the bank's investors makes his motives regarding her struggling business questionable.

Olivier is an older Holocaust survivor living in Paris. Having lost his entire family in Auschwitz, he dedicates his time to collecting records. He documents the fates of deported Parisian Jews and provides crucial information for Hope's search.

Sunshine is Rob's new, younger girlfriend. She actively competes with Annie for Rob's attention. Her presence creates emotional distress for the young girl and prompts Hope to intervene.

Nabi is the son of the Muslim family who sheltered Rose in Paris during the war. He continues his family's baking tradition at the Grand Mosque in Paris. He shares the history of religious unity that helped save Rose's life.

Elida is a woman connected to an Albanian Muslim family who helped save Jewish lives during the war. She translates for her Albanian grandmother. She embodies the cultural value of "besa," the obligation to help those in need.