When the slaves on the colony Yeowe (called "assets") overthrow the slave-holding class (called "owners"), the
owners on neighboring Werel launch a war to preserve the master-slave society that undergirds the economy
of both planets. Told from the perspectives of people caught in the crosshairs of the struggle, the stories in
this collection are linked by the character "Old Music," an Ekumen ambassador who is secretly working as an
abolitionist and supporter of Yeowe's emancipation. Together they ask: What does forgiveness look like in a
world riddled by racism and caste?
In "Betrayals," a disgraced revolutionary leader makes peace with his past. In the intersectional "Forgiveness
Day," a female ambassador from the Ekumen struggles with the patriarchal culture of Werel, while "A Man of
the People" tells the life story of a male Ekumen ambassador to Yeowe. "A Woman's Liberation" tells the story
of a woman who, after escaping to freedom, must reckon with the internalized racism that still enchains her.
And finally, the story "Old Music and the Slave Women" braids the collection together and counts the cost of
justice.
