Berta and Bob Henderson have plenty of love for their children--and enough even for a foster child.
When Annie, a young amnesiac found wandering the streets of a nearby city, comes into their home, bad things begin to happen
.
Mimi Bosarge, the live-in tutor, has a deep love for Coden, Alabama, which in the 1940s was a hideaway for movie stars and the wealthy. By 1976, Coden has been long forgotten. Bob's plans to renovate the old hotel on the Mississippi Sound would bring new life--and returned glamour--to the small, isolated community.
As Mimi prepares lessons,
she begins to see another child on the grounds
. One that looks eerily like Annie at times--but at other times mimics the physical traits of the other children. It becomes clear,
this creature, whatever it is, is stalking the Henderson family
Annie begins to display a sophistication beyond her years, and as tragedy strikes the family one by one, Mimi carries the burden of protecting the children.
Mimi believes Annie's innocent beauty is a sham, but how reliable is Mimi?
For the children, the truth is the only thing that can save them.