Island Queen

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A remarkable historical novel based on the true story of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, a free woman of color who rose from slavery to become one of the wealthiest landowners in the colonial West Indies. Born into slavery on the Caribbean island of Monserrat, Doll purchased her freedom—and that of her sister and mother—from her Irish planter father. She built a legacy of wealth and power as an entrepreneur, merchant, hotelier, and planter, with influence extending from the sugar plantations of Dominica and Barbados to a luxury hotel in Demerara, South America. Vanessa Riley’s narrative vividly brings Doll to life as she navigates the harsh realities of slavery and colonialism, leveraging the interests of the men around her: a restless shipping merchant, a wealthy planter with a secret, and a roguish naval captain who would later become King William IV of England. From the bustling port cities of the West Indies to the elite drawing rooms of London, this epic tale follows an adventurer and survivor who defied the rigid morality of the eighteenth century and overcame the oppression of women and people of color. It is an unforgettable portrait of a larger-than-life woman who made her mark on history.