Cornwall 1786.
20 years ago, fate denied Adam Loveday his birthright : the family estate, Trevowan, and the boatyard that his father is struggling to maintain. And the intense childhood rivalry between Adam and his elder twin St John continues to govern their fated passions and chequered fortunes.
St John has become a dissolute wastrel but Adam, with a talent for ship design and a thirst for adventure, has fierce family pride in Trevowan and the yard. Aware of his father's increasing disapporval, St John fears that the Loveday yard will be given to Adam after all, and puts into motin a plan to ensure that Adam will never get what his heart desires : the boatyard - and Meriel Sawle, the seductive daughter of the local innkeeper, whose violent family are infamous in the smuggling trade...
500 blz