Like a tattered string of paper dolls, maternal patterns reappear generation after generation. How much of a mother's history is reflected in the decisions and challenges faced by her daughter? Reacting to her husband's affair with his research assistant, Sara flees her secure life in suburban Boston, uprooting her two children and moving into a family lake house in Winnesquall, New Hampshire. There, Sara's life reels in unanticipated directions. Living in a small cottage next door is down-to-earth single mother, Cindy, a local woman with little patience for 'outsiders' like Sara and her children. Yet something in Sara's struggle pulls Cindy in, ultimately leading to heartbreak, redemption, and, through Sara's actions, the fracturing of Cindy's hard exterior. Worlds apart, the two women share an uneasy bond as they grapple with inherited templates for womanhood and discover the distinct garland of paper dolls lingering in the shadows of their lives.