On a plantation in the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, a man's body is found in a pond, riddled with bullets. The victim is Monsieur Calais, a wealthy land-owner; within 24 hours, a suspect is arrested. Anne Marie Laveaud, a French-born judge who has recently been transferred to Guadeloupe, is called in to make a ruling. With a keen sense of compassion for the accused, she must navigate the world of Caribbean justice - very different from what she was used to in France - to confirm her suspicion that all is not as it seems.