There is an Indian proverb: If you live by the banks of a river, make friends with the crocodile. Set in India, this is a novel about the corrosive relationship between a mother and daughter-in-law, and the contempt in which that society still holds women. Siddiqa's son has brought his new wife, Naira, to live with them, so Siddiqa is no longer the lowest of the household, for she now has a daughter-in-law to assume that role. But when Naira accuses one of her husband's friends of sexually assaulting her, all their lives begin to spiral out of control.