Confronted with the task of re-inventing her life, young widow Priya grieves by researching spiritualism for a new age magazine and spending time in the garden her late husband, Gabe, had tended. Human contact is limited to an elderly nursing home resident, Jeevan, who is from her father's native land of Sri Lanka. Soon Priya is drawn further into Jeevan's world, which includes a mysterious nephew, Suresh. Despite rigid religious views, Suresh takes advantage of Priya's vulnerability. Soon an isolated Priya finds herself facing the prospect of either single motherhood or a loveless marriage. While her Canadian and Sri Lankan friends Meg and Shobi conduct a tug of war over Priya's destiny, Suresh's jealous and coercive tactics prevent her from exploring a third possibility, her kindly neighbour Ryan, the only person whose presence gives Priya a genuine sense of solace. In this sequel to the author's earlier novel, Priya's World, Priya life is mired in uncertainty, but as spring begins to stir, the garden Gabe planted begins to speak to her of new life and fresh possibilities.

At twenty-five, kindergarten teacher Priya must accept the loss of her parents in a plane crash. Her grief plunges her into an eating disorder. While her friends recognize that she is crying out for help, Priya denies it all as she strives to make peace with Renita, her father's sister-a woman who appears chronically depressed. Unbeknownst to Priya, Renita harbours a disturbing family secret. While Priya battles her inner demons, she finds herself choosing between two men: Trent, the handsome young performing arts instructor she meets through a friend and Gabe, compassionate and empowering-but with a past that causes the very mention of his name to rankle the nerves of Priya's maternal grandparents. Priya must find the strength to overcome the ravages of anorexia and the tyranny of food disorders, as well as the poisonous role that family secrets can play on more than one generation. Throughout her heart-wrenching journey of self-discovery, Priya will lose her health and her family as she knows it, but ultimately she will reach out to others in unexpected ways and take bold steps to re-invent her life.