The Hawaii of 1930 is a colonial paradise: the soft winds and smooth seas had lured the white man to these seductive islands and the presence of cheap kanaka labor encouraged him to stay. Five families now control all the wealth of the islands while the U.S. Navy patrols the vast Pacific from its base at Pearl. The last royal Hawaiian family princess, Luahine, lives in exile from her people on a distant island, stripped of power by the haole intruder.

But the genteel facade of life in the American territory is suddenly and savagely shattered. Hester Ashley Murdoch, the young society wife of a Navy lieutenant, is found battered and bleeding on a lonely beach road and unjustly accuses four local boys of rape and assault. On her identification, the boys are brought to trial amidst unprecedented media attention from the outraged Mainland, defended only by a scared young kanaka lawyer, Tom Halehone.

The verdict sets in motion a whirlwind of violent passion. Caught in the maelstrom are Tom Halehone and his new love, Sarah, who try desperately to prove the boys' innocence; police captain Curt Maddox, who suspects the lie but is himself embroiled in compromising passions and loyalties; and the princess, who emerges from seclusion to aid her people. When a vigilante-style beating and a brutal murder rock the islands, the stage is set for the final confrontation that will decide not only the destiny of the defendants but of all the participants, and indeed of Hawaii itself.