Bride is a regional manager at the cosmetics company Sylvia, Inc., overseeing her own makeup line called YOU, GIRL. She is a glamorous woman with very dark skin who refashioned herself from a traumatized country girl into a confident corporate figure. Underneath her carefully curated exterior, she harbors deep insecurities stemming from a loveless childhood and the recent abrupt end of her relationship.

Booker is a graduate student of economics who dreams of completing a grand theory on greed and exploitation titled The Cross and the Vault. He occasionally works as an average trumpet player and struggles to maintain close connections. He initially presents as mysterious, often lecturing on esoteric academic subjects like California water rights while keeping his past hidden.

Sofia is a former teacher recently released from prison after serving a fifteen-year sentence for child sexual abuse. Raised in a strict, religiously conservative home, she married a controlling man to escape her parents' discipline. She attempts to transition back into society while struggling with the lasting psychological trauma of incarceration.

Sweetness is a fair-skinned African American woman who works night shifts at a hospital. She struggles with internalized colorism and feels revulsion toward her daughter's very dark skin. She insists her child call her Sweetness rather than Mama to avoid drawing public attention to their biological connection.

Brooklyn is an ambitious young white woman working at Sylvia, Inc. She appropriates black culture by sporting blonde dreadlocks and often dates African American men. She views her manager's emotional fragility as a potential opportunity for her own corporate advancement.

Queen Olive is Booker's outspoken, red-haired aunt who dispenses blunt advice. Modeled somewhat after blues singers, she possesses a tough exterior and a complicated personal history involving several ex-husbands and estranged children. She lives surrounded by numerous personal belongings.

Rain is a young girl living a primitive lifestyle with her foster parents in Northern California. She carries severe trauma from early-childhood abuse and trafficking. She finds temporary relief in sharing her harrowing past with a willing listener.

Adam is Booker's older brother whose disappearance shattered their family. His tragic fate heavily influences Booker's worldview, leading Booker to idealize his memory at the expense of present relationships.

Mr. Leigh is a harsh landlord who charges elevated rent to Sweetness because of her race. He uses crude, racist language and engages in predatory behavior out of sight of most adults.

Louis is Sweetness's light-skinned husband. Convinced that his wife's dark-skinned baby cannot be his, he abandons his family, though he eventually provides some child support.

Evelyn is Steve's wife, living in a primitive, anti-materialistic setting. She engages in intensive home-schooling and household labor but struggles to face the harsh realities of her foster daughter's past.

Steve is an uncompromising man who maintains a rustic lifestyle reflective of 1960s counterculture values. He acts as a guardian to a rescued child and provides emergency assistance to travelers.

Jeri is a designer friend who encourages Bride to wear all white with small pops of color. He advises her to treat her dark skin as a highly marketable commodity.

Felicity is a young woman who dates Booker during his transient musician phase. She criticizes his tendency to intervene aggressively in other people's business.

Mr. Humboldt is an unassuming mechanic who drives a large van. He is a predator whose actions profoundly damage the Stabern family and alter the trajectory of Booker's life.

Julie is an incarcerated woman who works in the prison sewing shop alongside Sofia. She becomes increasingly withdrawn after suffering brutal violence while serving her sentence.

Jack is Sofia's controlling husband. He communicates erratically with her during her incarceration, sending letters filled with vitriol.

Mr. Stabern is Booker's father, who attempts to maintain household routines despite severe family tragedy. He eventually loses patience with his surviving son's academic arrogance.

Mrs. Stabern is Booker's mother, who nurtures her family but isolates them somewhat from the modern, media-obsessed world. She focuses on providing hearty meals during difficult financial times.