The book begins by starting off with the life story of Willie Chandran's dad, in India. Willie Chandran's father was part of an affluent family with positions high up in the government, starting from when his grandfather first landed a job working for the king, which was then succeeded by that grandfather's son, which was finally supposed to be succeeded by Willie Chandran's dad. However, Willie Chandran's dad was not content with this bland life of government work in the tax office, despite the numerous promotions he was receiving on the basis of his father's name. He was even supposed to be married to the daughter of the principal at an extremely prestigious school. This too meant nothing to him. What really mattered was the independence movement taking place across the country, led by Mahatma Gandhi. Heeding the calls of Mahatma Gandhi, Willie Chandran's dad decided to break from his family's heritage and married a poor woman of low caste. This leads to the birth of Willie and his sister Sarojini.
This union led to a life of regret for Willie Chandran's dad and Willie. He grew up ashamed of his family background and despised his father for his character. Willie loved his mother but soon even that relationship started to distance itself. At 18, struggling with his sense of who he really was, he leaves India for London on a scholarship to study at a University. It was a scary life for him, completely foreign to the life he was used to. Willie had to change all his habits and manners, and make himself more snobbish and pompous to fit the style of behavior at the University. He was also confounded with a new sense of freedom and used that freedom to explore himself. Willie gains confidence and a few friends like Percy Cato, who try to help him conquer his own self-doubt through sexual adventures. He often falls for the girlfriends of his friends and is often agitated and unsure of himself. Throughout this process he captures the art of writing and publishes a book, a collection of short stories he wrote. After months he finally gets a response from a fan, a woman named Ana, and falls in love with her. Ana makes him feel confident and secure as she accepts him for who he is. Willie doesn't have to hide his background or personality and with no better option after his scholarship terminates, he marries Ana and moves to the Portuguese colony in Africa where Ana's grandfather had established a mighty estate house through his wealth.
When Willie arrives there, he knows he made a mistake. This life with Ana is not for him. But he stays for 18 years. 18 long and tumultuous years. Willie learns the language there and takes his role as head of the estate. He and Ana are in love but slowly we see this love wither away. They become friends with the nearby estate owners and seem like a great couple but a rift is slowly opening up between the two of them. Willie once more tries to find himself through his friends and various sexual adventures. It started off as a one-time thing but Willie slowly begins to repeatedly visit the places of pleasure. Even this leaves him feeling haunted and empty. He tries to go to the port city nearby and find something meaningful in his life but there is noting there for him. A new couple move in near Willie and Ana's estate house and Willie falls in love with the woman who moved there, Graca. He makes love to her many times but never sees her again after the guerrilla fighters kill Graca's husband. Life is unsteady and nobody knows how everything will pan out because of the war. Willie and Ana now sleep in separate bedrooms, but they do talk. Finally, at the age of 41, Willie slips on the front steps of the estate and in the hospital, tells Ana he wants a divorce. He felt like he had done nothing in his life, and lived a life that was not his own.
