Summary

Chapter 1 opens in media res, towards the end of the main narrative. The novel’s main characters are twin sisters Laurel and Daphne Wolfe. In Chapter 2, they are married adults living in New York, and they appear to be feuding for a reason that the story does not yet reveal. Chapter 3 then shifts to the beginning of the narrative. Daphne and Laurel are young children being raised by their mother and father (Sally and Arthur) in Larchmont, New York. The girls are twins and have a close bond. They were born in the early 1960s. However, Daphne is resentful of the fact that Laurel is technically the older sister, as Laurel was born 17 minutes before Daphne. Daphne feels that Laurel is always slightly ahead of her in every regard. Their uncle Don (Arthur’s younger brother) lives in the same neighborhood. Don’s wife...