Secrets abound in Lorna’s family. Her mother Marika, who survived the Nazi occupation of Holland, abandoned the family. The reason she left, and her whereabouts afterward, were shrouded in mystery. As is a darker secret Marika has repressed for nearly 70 years. Now that Lorna, a respected psychotherapist, has a child of her own, she’s determined to make Marika a part of their lives. But it’s been a struggle for nearly two decades. Lorna’s son, Adam, is creative, passionate and uncomfortable in his own skin. The more Lorna tries to get Adam to talk, the more he withdraws. How do you care for people you can’t understand and who don’t want to be understood? As Lorna confronts this question, she must face secrets of her own.

Littlefield, Massachusetts, named one of the Twenty Best Places to Live in America, is full of psychologists and college professors, proud of its fine schools, girls’ soccer teams, leafy streets and quaint village center. Yet when sociologist Dr. Clarice Watkins arrived in Littlefield to study the elements of “good quality of life,” someone begins poisoning the town’s dogs. Are the poisonings in protest to an off-leash proposal for Baldwin Park --- the subject of much town debate --- or the sign of a far deeper disorder?

Mirella and Howard Cook-Goldman have it all—two beautiful children, the home of their dreams, successful careers, even a golden retriever. The only thing they lack is reliable childcare. After weeks of searching and interviewing, they are sent Randi Gill by a respected child-care placement agency and all their problems are solved. Randi is the nanny they always wanted. She sews, cooks, cleans, and quickly bonds with the children. In fact, she’s almost too perfect. As Randi’s attachment to the children grows, Mirella and Howard begin to have misgivings about her and tension builds in their once happy home.