Meena Kumari was seven when she was abducted from her village in Rajasthan. Though she managed to escape a life of slavery, she was unable to find her way home, and was adopted by a wealthy American couple.

Now thirty-five, Meena has a flourishing career in San Francisco, but she lacks a personal life and keenly feels the separation from her heritage. Lonely and homesick, she sets out to find her old village, and the man designated to be her husband in a childhood arranged marriage. But her mission is complicated by her growing involvement with Antoine Dobson, a sexy American novelist, who seems to find in Meena the same soulmate she seeks for herself. As she embarks for India, she begins a journey that will change her life forever, and renew her faith in herself.