The Pardoners

A misty evening in 1960s Wellington. Two young men make eye contact on a crowded bus. Unknown to them, they are connected by a recent brutal crime. Though irresistibly drawn together, their encounter takes a shocking turn. They are lost to each other and must follow separate destinies – Kit as an academic in England and Laney on an isolated Waikato farm. Twenty years later, they meet again to confront their demons and enduring passion.
It is now Easter 1984. The Muldoon government is faltering and political change is in the wind. Lec and Dora Dunell, newly reunited after an estrangement, are hosting a small house party at a homestead in Hawke’s Bay’s Tuki Tuki river valley.
When Kit arrives Laney immediately recognizes him – and so to her horror does Dora. Two decades earlier he was in the dock charged with the manslaughter of her brother Phil, Laney’s friend and flatmate.
What must these characters do to save the situation? How will they secure their relationships? Chastened by life’s experiences, they come to realize that peace of mind and lasting happiness can only be gained through the act of forgiving – themselves as well as others.