Miguel Lienzo is a Jew in 17^th-century Amsterdam.  He is an immigrant, having escaped the dreaded Inquisition in his native Portugal.  Living on the run, he has honed his skills in guile and subterfuge.  These skills serve him well as he begins trading in the Amsterdam commodities market.  But the market, as always, is volatile, and as the story opens, Miguel has lost everything in the sugar trade.

He is approached by a Dutch woman who entices him into her scheme to corner the market in a new commodity known as coffee.  Miguel, unable to resist the potential financial windfall, agrees.  This new venture will require quite a bit of skill, since at this point in history, most Europeans have never heard of coffee.  Miguel’s skill and both merchant and trader will be called on to make this work. 

There are several levels to this novel.  The first, and most obvious, is the world’s first commodities market in Amsterdam.  The trading, buying, and selling, doesn’t seem quite so different from what goes on in today’s stock market.  Miguel will risk everything to be in on the ground floor of what could be a world-wide trade in coffee.  There is also Miguel’s internal struggle with his religion.  As a Jew, fleeing the Inquisition, this is more of an issue that it might otherwise be.  Then there’s the madman who is trying to extort money from him at every turn.