Two sensational trials in Southern Rhodesia in 1923 lay bare the evils of settler colonialism. White railwayman Iolo James defends his black domestic servant, Michael, in court against sexual assault charges laid by his wife, Doris. All three will pay a heavy price. Iolo considers himself to be a principled opponent of Empire, embarking on quixotic attempts to right its wrongs. Yet, despite good intentions, he often does much more harm than good to the people close to him. Normal relationships seem all but impossible in this deeply damaged society. Jon Lunn's novel is a layered, deeply moving exploration of an unjust historical epoch whose legacies persist to this day.

Jon Lunn was born in London in 1961 and still lives there. He completed a doctorate in African history at the University of Oxford in 1988. Since then, he has been an academic, researcher and activist, working for organisations ranging from Amnesty International to the UK Foreign Office, from the London School of Economics to the House of Commons Library, He has now turned his hand to writing a novel.