Lim is most successful when observing the natural world and capturing the essence of the Jamaican people, including those on the margins of society. Her depictions of domestic violence are especially searing, as are those of a society riven by fears of violence and murder. Other, more personal, poems explore Lim’s mixed racial heritage or poignantly recount the poet’s relationship with her mother, who emigrated to Venezuela when Lim was three years old. The collection is notable for its thematic ambition...