The Foreign Land of the Very Wealthy - otherwise known as Manhattan's Upper East Side - has its own rigid code of behaviour. It's a code strictly adhered to by the Wilder-Bingham family, who live well-displayed, well-edited lives. Thomas Wilder-Bingham is a partner in a prestigious law firm. At least - that's who he is to Glenn, his icy, domineering wife. At least - that's who Glenn is to Kemble, her weak and dissolute son. At least - that's who Kemble is to Natalie, the unhappy mother of his three children. At least- that's who Natalie is to Teddy, her protective teenage son. So when an unconventional thirty-eight-year-old primary school teacher from England bounces into their inflexible lives with a secret sorrow and a heart as big as the city, nobody realises she hasn't read the rule book. And for the Wilder-Bingham family, whose lives begin to unravel thread by thread, the consequences are explosive . . .