England, early 1900s. Alice, a young noblewoman, has a Japanese maid named Hanako who works in her household. The two young women have a fairly normal relationship... at least until the day Alice begs Hanako to kill her. As Hanako tries to understand why her mistress made such a terrible request and what terrible secret torments her, she and Alice grow closer, until a whole new feeling begins to blossom between them. Binding and format: Paperback with dust jacket, 192 pages, black and white