Sam (10) and his family head off to the Dutch island of Terschelling on holiday, but his brother breaks his leg on their first day there. Bad luck for his brother, but the accident lets Sam meet Tess; a peculiar girl who has an ingenious plan for getting to know her birth father. She's got just one week to make his acquaintance, and she decides that Sam should help her. Although Sam is forcing himself to practice being alone to protect himself from future grief, he discovers during his adventures with Tess how important family really is.