It is 1830. Rutherford Calhoun, a newly freed slave and irrepressible rogue, is desperate to escape unscrupulous bill collectors and an impending marriage to a priggish schoolteacher. He jumps aboard the first boat leaving New Orleans, the Republic, a slave ship en route to collect members of a legendary African tribe, the Allmuseri. Thus begins a daring voyage of horror and self-discovery.--Publisher's description.

Set in New England, a farmer struggles to survive a bare existence, tethered to his farm, first by his helpless parents and then by a hypochondriac wife. Yet, when his wife's alluring cousin comes to stay, his dreams are rekindled.

Eight of these stories never before published.