A real African man deserves more than one wife. It is sign of manhood and a measure of wealth. After all, Musa is the foreman on the farm and earns good wages. And Rhoda, the young school-teacher, seems willing enough to be a second wife. The only problem is Tisa, the mother of his seven children, and a devout student of the scriptures. But like most woman in her society, Tisa is powerless . . . Or is she? Musa"s determination to marry Rhoda against Tisa"s wishes sets in motion an unforeseeable chain of events. Set in Southern and Northern Rhodesia in the run-up to Zambian independence in 1963, the novel provides an intimate portrait of village life, of age-old customs and individual passions.