Constance Ledbelly, a drab and dusty academic, deciphers a cryptic manuscript she believes to be the original source for Othello and Romeo and Juliet. She is transported into the plays themselves, visits Juliet and Desdemona, has a hand in saving them from the deaths the Bard had planned for them, and finds out what these women are all about.

In true Shakespearean spirit, Constance plunders the plays and creates something new, all the while engaging in a personal voyage of self-discovery and encountering an abundance of twists, fights, dances, seductions and wild surprises.