Ratty Barclay wasn't supposed to be born a four-foot-tall, walking, talking rodent, but thanks to the Barclay family curse, he's had to live in hiding from the rest of the world. All he wants for his thirteenth birthday is to return to his family's abandoned estate on Fairweather Island to somehow break the curse. Then he'll finally get to live his life as a four-foot-tall, walking, talking, human boy.

Edweena Gup, the granddaughter of the Barclays' groundskeeper, has dedicated her life to being a Rat-Catcher Extraordinaire like her great-great-great grandmother before her. It doesn't matter that Fairweather Island has been rat-free for over a hundred years--she's determined to make sure everyone is prepared for their imminent return. And when she spots a human-sized rat lurking on the Barclay grounds, her worst fears are confirmed.

Though it seems like Ratty and Edweena are destined to be enemies, they have a lot in common--they're both lonely and misunderstood. But will they be able to overcome their fears of each other and maybe even become . . . friends?