The Pastwatch is a research project where historians view the past and attempt to interpret the events they view. Tagiri is an African woman working at Pastwatch who makes Slavery her personal project. Through many years of research they summise that the moment that lead to the terrible tragedies of slavery was Christopher Columbus's successful return from the American continent and so begins the largest and most important Pastwatch project.

The other half of this novel is a fictionalised life of Christopher Columbus, and his attempts to get backing for his proposed voyage westward from Europe to find a quicker passage to the Orient.

This book is superb! It is one of Orson Scott Card's best, if not better than Ender's Game it is certainly it's equal in merit and the best the author has written since. Whereas Ender's Game was action packed and dragged you at a breakneck pace to the book's conclusion, this is a much more thoughtful, thought-provoking and mature novel.

His merging of the two plot lines (the futuristic world of the research project, and the fifteenth century Europe/New World) is handled magnificently. There is simply not a flaw in the book. Okay if you like hi-action militaristic stories then this will not be for you, but anyone who enjoys good sf and alternate histories will find something to enjoy in these pages.

Upon finishing this novel I found I have a serious contender for my personal top ten favourite sf of all time. This is simply stunning!