An Introduction

No man is an island wrote John Donne in 1624 but an island, particularly a tiny island of just twenty square miles and a population of fifty thousand souls, breeds some very special people. Independent-minded people, who over generations absorb all the demands of island life and who develop an undying passion for their unique homeland. Dilly Simons typifies this special breed, a fighter against prejudice and bigotry – she is determined that her island should remain a paradise where her daughters can prosper and grow.

But dark forces are at work desperate to upset the status quo. Into this turbulent melting pot stumbles one Jack Cross, a young, naive expatriate teacher, unaware of the tensions generated by years of racial divide. He believes that he has arrived in nirvana, the sun, the azure sea and the charismatic people beguile him and immediately he is captivated by the Island’s enveloping charm. But his dreams of paradise are shattered, as he is sucked into situations outside of his experience: racial tension, abductions, violence and eventually murder.

This powerful tale of love, intrigue and, at times, heart-stopping drama, is set in one Britain’s oldest and smallest colonies – Bermuda. It’s the nineteen-seventies, a time of turbulence, which concludes with the assassination of the Islands’ Governor, a wicked act that leaves Jack and his friends anxiously wondering what the future might hold.