First published 1952
Felicity Dorsett stands on the deck as her ship heads south to the Bahamas, leaving behind her patriot brother Harry in New York. Her Tory grandparents are taking her to their new pineapple plantation, but Felicity has smuggled two stowaways aboard: Cinder, her devoted slave girl, and Jake Groot, a street-smart boy from the Bowery who helped Cinder hide on the ship. On the plantation, Cinder falls under the spell of Mosella, a mysterious woman skilled in herbal medicine. Meanwhile, Jake makes secret trips to nearby islands, searching for treasure marked on a map he discovered when their ship rescued passengers from another vessel. At a native ceremony led by Mosella, the children discover the treasure belongs to old Lucayan, the last surviving Bahaman Indian. He uses the riches to help enslaved people purchase their freedom. Felicity must navigate her conflicted feelings about slavery, family loyalty, and her own place in this tropical world of pirates and hidden gold.
Genres: romance, historical-fiction, adventure, 19th-century
Vibes: emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Bahamas, Bowery, New York
Period: 19th-century
304 pages · Hardcover · Viking Juvenile
Content warnings: slavery