We meet David Grief and his Polynesian partner, Mauriri Lepau, two ambitious, adventurous traders working out of the beautiful town of Matavai in the tropical paradise of Tahiti.
An exotic black pearl suspected of having supernatural powers finds its way into Matavai and into Grief's possession. A mysterious foreigner arrives to claim it.
After two villains steal artifacts from a church and kill a priest, Grief sets off to avenge his death. Meanwhile, Mauriri's nephew enters warrior school even though his uncle would rather have him go to college.
Grief and Lavinia work to keep their relationship on track. However, Lavinia becomes doubtful when Grief is given the daughter of a tribal chief in a trade transaction. Luckily, the Reverend Trent takes a liking to her.
Blackbirding had, for all intents and purposes, come to a halt a few years before our takes place. However, several natives have recently been decimated of its youngest, strongest citizens.
A woman named Sarah Blanohard arrives in Matavai. Lavinia befriends her and feels great respect and admiration for her, although she is troubled by Grief's reaction to her.
For the first time since his break-up with Lavinia, Grief finds himself attracted to another woman: the beautiful Veronica Gray, assistant to archaeologist Paul Kelstrom.
Isabelle falls prey to a scam run by a con artist named Walsh in which she loses her own and some of Reverend Trent's church money when she buys property she has been led to believe contains gold.
A sailor is fatally stabbed in a knife fight in the bar, but with his dying breath, he manages to tell Grief that someone important is about to be assassinated in Matavai.
An Irish rogue named McCoy arrives in Matavai and offers Grief, Mauriri, and Isabelle a hefty reward to help him capture the sadistic prison warden, Frayne, who had tortured him daily for ten years.
Steven DeGuerre is a successful businessman who returns to Matavai to share his newfound success and the fortune he has acquired, coinciding with a series of explosions and criminal activities.
A centuries-old legend involving horse demons; a scared, hidden stone, and fire makes Mauriri believe in the power of his own dreams, the climax of which is the death of his best friend and partner, Grief.
During a boat trip celebrating Reverend Trent's birthday, the Rattler runs aground, stranding Grief, Mauriri, Trent, Lavinia, and Clare on an uninhabited island.
Jenny Duval is the beautiful, sensuous grieving widow of Grief's sworn enemy - unscrupulous trader and businessman Kunt Gunter. A group of lepers are looking to find a secluded island to call their own.
Jenny strikes again. She attacks a boat and kidnaps an inventor, Ryan Willer, creator of the gyrocompass, which is being sought after by numerous world powers, including her old German enemy, Victor.
Grief has been on alert for any news of Jenny and her whereabouts. When a sighting of her comes over the wires, he drops all other business to find her, much to Mauriri's deep concern.
