Black Cake is a dense, rum soaked, fruit filled cake - a part of every Caribbean celebration in spite of its colonial roots - a favorite treat for Eleanor Bennet to bake. It is a mystery then why Eleanor leaves a note to her children, who travel to Southern California for her funeral, that there is just such a cake for them to share when "the time is right". But first they are asked to listen to a long audio recording Eleanor left behind. Daughter Benny and son Byron are not expecting surprises. They have always known they were children of Jamaican immigrants who faced the discrimination rampant in American society together as a family. But there are secrets that go back to the time when Eleanor was named Covey, a fierce swimmer who fought against the constraints in her traditional upbringing in Jamaica. And their father - well that's another story. So back and forth between times and many places the truth is shared, the definition of home and family is challenged and connections between things like black cake and identity are explored. It's a rich, complicated journey.
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