Hazel Newton, who insists on being called Figgy, is elated at the prospect of a dream vacation. She will spend the winter break from her teaching job with her best friend, Tessa, who left teaching to work in Taiwan. Their reunion, Figgy is certain, will be filled with exotic sightseeing, meetings with interesting new people, and adventurous fun. Tessa has always known how to make even the most ordinary days full of excitement and laughter. Figgy expects her first international holiday to be unforgettable. And it is just not in the way she'd imagined. Within hours of her friend's arrival, Tessa must leave on a work assignment she can't postpone, which leads to her disappearance. Figgy's dream vacation soon devolves into a nightmare adrift in a strange city and unable to speak the language, she must track down her missing friend while being increasingly threatened by forces she doesn't understand.