I used to think the past was dead and gone, that time erased memories ... An unexpected visitor to a cocoa estate on the island of Trinidad triggers buried memories of the mysterious deaths that plagued a prosperous French Creole family who once lived there. Now a near ruin, the once "Great House" was where Joe, the housekeeper's precocious eleven-year-old son, bore witness to half-understood incidents and undercurrents in the lives of its residents. Decades later, his reawakened memories begin with the arrival of a handsome young stranger to the property-a catalyst which sets off a train of tragic events with consequences that reach into the present day. Rich in historical and geographical detail, Palmyra chronicles a time when an educated elite rose from the ashes of slavery and indentureship to challenge the ruling white plantocracy and create an independent nation. A part coming-of-age story, part Gothic mystery, Palmyra conjures a world teeming with divided loyalties, family secrets, and ambition.