Annie has always been an outsider in her English school. Uprooted from her home in Norway when her parents spilt up, she has never felt accepted by her peers. One of her chief tormenters is Grant Penney, always the first to tease her about her 'Viking ancestors' and her 'funny accent'.When Grant commits suicide, Annie feels compelled to try to find out what has driven such an outwardly confident and brash person to despair. As the pieces of the jigsaw finally fall into place, Annie is forced to realize that maybe she and Grant had more in common than she thought.