Forbidden is set on the French-Creole island of Saint Helen, in a society where people continue to struggle daily with the horrific legacies of slavery, long after Emancipation. There your social status is determined by the colour of your skin. Christian Joseph, a mulatto, and one of several major characters, is a by-product of the social and racial polarization that bedevils the island. He's a devoted acolyte of the Catholic Church and people look up to him because of his complexion and high standing with the priests. His world is turned upside down when he discovers he was born out of wedlock. He further discovers, to his dismay, that his father, heir to Paradise Estate, the island's most renowned sugar plantation, has died and left his property to Christian's mother - a poor black village girl. This causes disbelief and outrage among many in the community, including the priests. It forces Christian to return to the village of his birth to try and uncover the secrets of his pasts. Meantime, issues surrounding the bequest of Paradise Estate continue to stir up controversy and create turmoil in the lives of all those associated with it.