Massachusetts, 1970s. Born to a pair of âbleeding heartâ professors who live on campus as dorm parents, Frederica Hatch soon finds herself the unofficial mascot of Dewing College. Life is so ideal that by the time she becomes a teenager, Frederica finds herself chafing under the care of the most annoyingly evenhanded parental team in the history of civilization. But sheâs about to learn that life isnât as simple or idyllic as it seemsâeven amid the manicured lawns of a small womenâs college like Dewing. A new dorm parent has just arrived on campus. Laura Lee French is glamorous, worldly, and the former wife of Fredericaâs father. Suddenly, Frederica sees her parentsâ livesâand by extension her ownâin a whole new light.