Katherine “Kit” Tyler is a 16-year-old girl who has been raised in the liberal atmosphere of Barbados in the 1600s. As a result, she has developed an independent spirit. Although she isn’t beautiful like her cousins, Kit has a smile that transforms her features and draws the admiration of the wealthy William Ashby.

While Kit’s impulsive temperament is perfectly suited to the tropical paradise that she once called home, she frequently finds herself at odds with her straitlaced Puritan family in New England. Kit struggles to fit in and constantly longs to return to Barbados. Fortunately, she makes friends with Hannah Tupper and is encouraged to be herself despite everyone’s attempts to make her conform to Puritan rules.

Kit proves herself a loyal friend when she risks her own safety to rescue Hannah and protect Prudence from abuse. Her integrity wins the admiration of Nat Eaton, who proposes marriage to her by the end of the story. As a result, Kit will enjoy life both in Barbados with her sailor husband and among her adopted family in New England.