Etienne Gayneau and his friends at home and at sea as the English prepare to invade New Netherland, pirates roam the oceans, and pandemics and storms threaten to turn their worlds upside down.

Twelve-year-old Etienne takes to the sea again in September 1663 in a desperate move to earn the money his father needs to repay their debt only to find himself shanghaied onto a pirate ship captained by none other than his old rival, Jacob Janssen van den Burgh. He will soon discover that this voyage will test his character and his faith as he must choose whether to follow the easy path that leads to destruction or the harder road to self-discovery and redemption.

Meanwhile, back in the colonies, his friends must traverse their own difficult paths to self-discovery as they struggle to find their places in their own communities. Alsoomse resists following the traditional gender roles and her mother's expectations as she must make a seemingly impossible choice to discover her rightful place in the tribe. And Abraham, wrestles with his own mixed heritage and fights to prove his worth to his father as he must choose the kind of man he will become.