Sarah's father is missing, her ex-alcoholic mother is mentally ill, and they're so poor that Sarah occasionally eats bread left out for the ducks.Lonely and friendless, Sarah makes up stories to mask her misery and is branded a liar.Then Sarah meets Molly. A keen ornithologist Molly's considered a nerd, but the girls form an instant friendship, and when a mysterious sickness sweeps through the village, the girls decide to investigate.That's when the real trouble begins.