An epic novel, akin to a Norse saga, of the island peoples of Polynesia in the centuries prior to contact with European civilization. Two populations destined to intertwine inhabit disparate islands. Korero, a young teenage girl, her family and several other families are doing their best to stay alive on an island in the southern Pacific. Food and water are dangerously scarce. They think they have descended from the Maori of Aotearoa (New Zealand) but have forgotten how to navigate. Far off, the Tongan Empire is ruled by the Tu’itonga (King), a powerful Aunt (the Tomaha), and the King’s three sons. Like the heroes in Greek mythology, the main characters are thoughtful, well-meaning, flawed, hubristic, proud, anxious, timid, insecure, filial, brutal, and compassionate, often all at once, which makes this exceptionally well-researched and expertly told rendition a valuable and inviting introduction to cultures most of us might only catch a glimpse of from a hotel in Hawaii.