Nicolette Chamard, a woman of color in the most color-conscious city in the world, rejoices when the Union Army marches into New Orleans. At last her people will be free, and even knowing her collaboration with the Union will put her in danger, she means to help make it happen. Marcel Chamard, Nicolette’s privileged white half-brother, surveys the same parade and sees conquerors, not liberators. If the Union wins the war, it will mean the end of...

A woman with a secret, Lily Palmer flees with her six year old daughter to take refuge on her uncle’s farm in Louisiana. Here she finds herself in a world struggling with the after effects of the Civil War. For the first time, Lily is confronted with her own careless assumptions about race as she learns to appreciate the humanity of everyone around her, white and black. Threatening the fragile peace she achieves, her futile love for Alistair Whiteaker...