Life is a chain of beginnings. The odyssey of two driven individuals reaches its climax on a godforsaken island in the Mississippi: When Robard Hewes, in his early thirties and a day laborer, receives a love letter from his cousin Buena, a new passion ignites in the memory and becomes an obsession that destroys his marriage. The other, Sam Newel, a law student from Chicago, is searching for himself; he is determined not to become like his father. When Hewes and Newel meet on a swampy island that cannot be found on any map, they seemingly arrive at the end of their journey.