Truly Plaice, an overly large and ungainly girl, is the polar opposite of her sister, Serena Jane, the epitome of feminine perfection. With their parents dead, Truly and Serena Jane are separated: Serena Jane to live a life of privilege as the future May Queen and Truly to live on the outskirts of town, the subject of constant abuse and humiliation. There, while Serena Jane’s beauty proves to be her biggest curse, Truly finds her calling—the ability to heal illness with herbs and naturopathic techniques—and, in reckoning with her demons, the possibility of love in unexpected places.