The novel is a fictionalized account of the story behind Johannes Vermeer's famous painting of the same name. The main character is Griet, a 16-year-old Protestant girl from a working-class family in 17th-century Delft, Holland. She is hired as a maid in the household of the Catholic painter Vermeer.
Over the course of three years (1664-1666), Griet becomes fascinated by Vermeer's artistic process and gradually becomes his trusted assistant, helping to prepare his paints and canvases. She secretly hopes that by assisting him, Vermeer will grow to love her, but he remains devoted to his work above all else.
The novel's climax occurs when Vermeer uses his wife Catharina's pearl earrings, without her knowledge, to adorn Griet as the subject of his most famous painting. When Catharina discovers this betrayal, she flies into a rage and Griet is abruptly dismissed from the household.
Ten years later, after Vermeer's death, Catharina begrudgingly gives Griet the pearl earrings as per her husband's wishes. Griet pawns them, using part of the money to pay off the Vermeer family's debts as a final gesture of loyalty to her former master.

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