Meanwhile, as Jonathan commences his second chance and Hazel her rehabilitation, two other misfits knocking about London are trying to discover some direction in their lives, or at least the freedom to do as little as they please: an actress manque lately abandoned by her boyfriend; and a black American expatriate making do by repairing roofs, if he happens to feel like it. Eventually, though, these two, Charlotte and Freddie, cross paths at the bizarre household in which Hazel seems nearly a prisoner, and inevitably they become involved in an attempt to rescue her.

Replete with characters -- including a nosy neighbor, a mannequin-head designer, and Hazel's secretly lustful best friend -- and intricately plotted, The Missing World weaves together these separate quests for love and truth in a manner both thrilling and, ultimately, revealing about our imperfect human natures.