Anna is a fifth-generation West Indian, and she moves to England at the direction of her stepmother, Hester, upon her father’s demise. The death and the move have greatly affected her because she has had to suffer with both while being an outsider in an alien land. For her, the West Indies has a vibrancy and warmth that England can never give her, and she resists the values, expectations and identity she must uphold here.

She is seduced by Walter, who changes her trajectory as she experiences her first heartbreak and she, unable to cope and assimilate, turns to alcohol, men and fantasies. In the end, Anna simply desires approval and acceptance, and, after surviving a fatal abortion, she welcomes her chance at life.

Walter pursues Anna and takes care of her financially until his romantic interest runs out. He is older, wealthy and established, and prefers to maintain his veneer of propriety and his Englishness because, unlike Anna, he prefers both certainty and the cold.

In the beginning, he seems to care for Anna, but decides to discard her with influence from Vincent, with whom he shares a close relationship. Despite his callous treatment, he offers to assist Anna financially, in order to assure himself that he still does her justice and that no guilt exists on his part, after he uses her.