There is only one thing Molly has ever desired in her life; to love and be loved by someone. The odds have been stacked against her, what with an abusive relationship with her father and an obesity problem that forces her to hide from her classmates. Feeling like a true ugly duckling, Molly breaks away from the constraints of her family by telling a little white-lie to her biology teacher that ends with a visit from the police and a social worker. Deciding that she needs a fresh start, Molly runs away from home only to be found by a sexually perverse old man who's willing to give her a job and a place to stay under a few "conditions."

Standing atop a ladder in a storage closet, Mr. Roberts positions himself under her with a prime view up her skirt as Molly tells him a series of "stories" about her sexual history. However, seeing as she has had no sexual experiences to relay, Molly is forced to lie lest she be turned out on her ear. Seeking out material with which to pad her stories, Molly tries to find a boyfriend and does a little research at the local library. She meets Tim, a paranoid schizophrenic who believes he is a secret agent, on a park bench and starts a really sketchy romance. Liz, the lonely librarian, reserves only the dirtiest French novels for her romantic edification. Trying to emulate Catherine M. and Pauline Reage's "O," Molly stumbles through the most anemic of romances ever written.

Lacking in direction, Sarah Salway lets us wind through a minefield of deception and lies. As Molly continues to morph into an evil twin version of herself, more questions arise and are frustratingly left unanswered.