A Respectable Trade

Bristol, 1787. Merchant Josiah Cole marries the well-connected Frances Scott to improve his standing and finance his entry into the trade in enslaved Africans. Frances is expected to teach a group of captives enough English to increase their sale value.

Her relationship with Mehuru, a Yoruba priest taken from West Africa, forces her to confront the violence supporting her household and city. The novel follows merchants, captives and abolitionists through an economy that treats slavery as ordinary and respectable commerce.