Lucinda Ellis has never really mastered the knack for dealing with people. Not that she is shy. On the contrary, she has no qualms telling others exactly what she thinks of them. So she usually avoids undue human contact. Until her sister, Jayne, decides to take a sudden trip to America.

With Jayne's husband, Brian, stranded in a remote Aboriginal community, Lucinda is forced to take charge of Jayne's children David and Madison, their ridiculous dachshund Wilma, plus the malingering presence of teenage emo Wesley Heslop, who's taken up residence on the couch.

Naturally, Lucinda is determined to do things her way while Jayne and Brian play out their mid-life crises. But as events spiral out of control both at home and her workplace, Lucinda reaches a turning point. She realises that to survive the whirlwind, she's going to have to find the courage to do something that she has always been terrified of... open her heart to new relationships and possibilities.