At only five years old, Saroo Brierley got lost on a train in India. Unable to read or write or recall the name of his hometown or even his own last name, he survived alone for weeks on the rough streets of Calcutta before ultimately being transferred to an agency and adopted by a couple in Australia.

Six years after adopting a son, a woman tries to defend her family when another woman claiming to be the son's biological mother arrives and demands his return.

Three women's lives share a common core. They have all been profoundly affected by adoption. At age fourteen, Karen placed a baby for adoption, and has been haunted ever since by the daughter she never knew. Elizabeth grew up as an adopted child. Even though she is a bright and ambitious lawyer, she is a flinty loner in her personal life. Lucy and her husband are just embarking on the adoption odyssey, hoping for the opportunity to become parents....