This is a quite powerful book filled with fully developed characters. The two main storylines--the present-day one and Mr. Sitwell's past--are intertwined in a believable and interesting manner that keeps you reading on to discover what is next. The slow reveal of information keeps the reader reassessing things after each one of these. This is a fascinating look into the lives, minds, and hearts of African-American servants at the beginning of the twentieth century and the brutal racism, as well as the casual cruelty of their employers, with which they must deal.