South Sea Tales

Set against the shimmering lagoons of the Pacific atoll of Hikueru, the story follows a young European supercargo named Raoul, newly tasked with overseeing trade in pearls, copra, and shell. He arrives on a modest schooner, watches native divers surface with their hauls, and is thrust into the world of island commerce where fortunes can change in a single glance.

When a local diver, Mapuhi, presents Raoul with a pearl unlike any other—perfect, luminous, and heavy as a pigeon’s egg—an uneasy bargain begins. The pearl’s beauty awakens both awe and greed, and Mapuhi’s demand for an elaborate iron‑roofed house on his island seems both extravagant and puzzling. Raoul, amused yet calculating, must weigh the cost of such a promise against the lure of an unprecedented treasure, setting the stage for a clash of cultures and ambitions.