After her parents are killed in a road accident, Delia Yebarra's life is turned upside-down. At fifteen, she leaves the rural Mexican village where she grew up to embark on a new life in America. Arriving at her wealthy Aunt Isabella's huge estate in Palm Springs, California, should be a dream come true for a simple country girl like Delia - so why does it feel like a nightmare?

Her aunt refuses to acknowledge Delia's heritage, relegating her to the servants' quarters with a lecherous language tutor who is intent on exploiting the beautiful young foreigner. Her cousin Edward is kind, but cousin Sophia is cruel, manipulative and resentful of Delia's sultry Latin looks. And just when Delia tries to embrace the life of an all-American girl, a heartbreaking chain of events sends her spiralling back to a Mexico she hardly recognises . . .