Carver was born in Penrose, a small town in Cornwall marked by religiosity and isolation. The son of a single mother who sacrificed herself in countless jobs to support him, he grew up humble and lonely, always seen as strange because of his shyness and physical stature. When his mother suffered a stroke, he abandoned his studies at sixteen to work in hard labor and as a gravedigger, dedicating every effort to supporting and caring for her. Despite his strength and discipline, he carried a silent melancholy, unable to provide his mother with the luxuries and joys he saw in the families around him. His greatest desire was, at least once, to give her a real gift at Christmas. This purpose led him to a farm recently bought by a wealthy family surrounded by dark rumors. There, upon meeting the owner's daughter, Carver saw his life change: the desire for money became secondary to an overwhelming obsession. She became the center of his world, the reason for his devotion, and Carver, the lonely and resigned man, began to walk between gratitude for his mother and a dangerous passion that could consume everything that remained of his humanity.