The book takes place in Kashmir near the border between India and Pakistan. Jessie More and her college roommate Sue Singh return to India with their young daughters to visit Sue's family. After they arrive, Jessie is reunited with an old love from Florida and Sue learns that her teenage twins aready in Kashmir have been volunteering with a doctor who is helping displaced women and children. Tensions build in the Singh family over the behavior of the American teenagers. Much has changed in India since Jesse's last visit. The streets of Srinagar, capitol of Kashmir, now seethe with undercurrents of violence. People are disappearing. Too late, Jesse and Sue realize that they have made a mistake traveling so far from home with their children. The book explores the roles of landscape, chance, sacrifice and betrayal in human relationships. It is a story of the different faces and the enduring powers of friendships and love.