Antoinette is a beautiful young white Creole woman living in the shifting social dynamics of 1830s Jamaica. Isolated from both the newly arrived English elite and the recently emancipated Black population, she is stubborn, provincial, and deeply attached to the Caribbean environment. She longs for stability and a sense of belonging in a world that continually reminds her of her precarious social standing.

Annette is Antoinette's beautiful mother, originally from Martinique. As a white Creole woman struggling to maintain Coulibri Estate after the Emancipation Act, she fluctuates between desperately trying to salvage their social status and sinking into profound anxiety. She is emotionally fragile and struggles to adapt to the new realities of Jamaican society.

The unnamed English husband is a younger son who travels to the West Indies seeking fortune through marriage. He is stiff, formal, and deeply unsettled by the lush, overwhelming environment of the Caribbean. Although entranced by his wife's beauty, he resents her Creole heritage and the cultural differences that divide them.

Christophine is a formidable "blue-black" woman originally from Martinique. Given to Annette as a wedding present, she has stayed with the family as Antoinette's devoted nurse. She is fiercely independent, proudly unmarried, and well-respected in the community due to her practice of obeah.

Mr. Mason is an affluent, pragmatic Englishman who marries Annette. He brings financial stability and order back to Coulibri Estate but operates with a sense of English superiority. He is deeply dismissive of Caribbean culture and fundamentally misunderstands the social dynamics and racial tensions brewing on the island.

Aunt Cora is a former slave owner and relative of the Cosway family who lives in Spanish Town. Having survived a marriage to an overbearing Englishman, she values financial independence and autonomy. She serves as a pragmatic, clear-eyed guardian to Antoinette when the family faces crises.

Daniel is a mixed-race man who claims to be the illegitimate son of Antoinette's father. Educated in Barbados and living in relative comfort, he harbors a deep, consuming bitterness over being disinherited and socially marginalized. He is resentful of the legitimate Cosway heirs and seeks to undermine them.

Amélie is a young, beautiful, mixed-race servant working at the honeymoon house in Dominica. She is ambitious, cynical, and highly observant of the fraying dynamic between the newly married couple. She dreams of leaving the island to seek her fortune elsewhere and uses the tensions around her to her advantage.

Alexander is Antoinette and Daniel's half-brother. Unlike Daniel, he was favored by their father and has built a comfortable life in Spanish Town, owning several businesses and marrying into a respectable family.

Sandi is Alexander Cosway's son and Antoinette's mixed-race cousin. Handsome and accepted by many white people, he is one of the few male figures in Antoinette's life who treats her with genuine care and respects her autonomy.

Tia is the daughter of Christophine's friend Maillotte and Antoinette's only childhood companion. Their friendship is fraught with the harsh realities of race and class in post-emancipation Jamaica, often erupting into sharp, painful conflicts.

Richard is Mr. Mason's son from a previous marriage. Educated in Barbados, he acts as an authority figure for the family after his father's passing, orchestrating Antoinette's marriage with little regard for her legal or financial protections.

Pierre is Antoinette's disabled younger brother. He struggles with his physical and mental development, making him a highly vulnerable member of the household and a constant source of worry for his mother.

Maillotte is a former slave who was freed by Old Man Cosway. She is an older woman in the community who forms a tight bond with Christophine and raises her children near the estate.

Baptiste is an older, experienced servant who oversees the house in Dominica. He is capable and observant, quickly understanding the true nature of the English husband while remaining stoic and dutiful.

Grace Poole is an English woman employed to look after Antoinette. She acts as a warden, monitoring Antoinette's movements and guarding the keys to the outside world, though she occasionally displays moments of pity.