After a devastating hurricane ravages their Jamaican plantation, the Bas-Thornton children are sent on a voyage to England by their parents. En route, their ship is overrun by pirates, and the children are brought into a world of violence and moral ambiguity, with their innocence at stake.

A High Wind in Jamaica , originally named The Innocent Voyage , is Richard Hughes’ first and most celebrated novel. Credited for influencing Lord of the Flies , the book was inspired by an unpublished report written by someone who had been taken hostage by pirates as a child.