ON WILDER SEAS

Inspired by the true story of Maria, the only woman on the Golden Hind with Francis Drake when he circumnavigated the world in 1577-1580.

For over ten years, Maria has been a slave. She has been taken from Africa to Mexico to Manila to Lima, forced to give up everything she has ever known along the way - her freedom, her family, her name, her child. But when her Spanish master's merchant ship is captured by the infamous English Corsair, Drake, halfway through his extraordinary voyage of discovery around the globe, she senses an opportunity to regain what she has lost. Stealing an opal from her master to bargain with, she persuades the English General to let her join his ship on its long voyage back to England. Because Maria has a secret. She is with child again, and this time, she has no intention of allowing her child to be raised a slave. In England, they could be free.

As the Golden Hind explores undiscovered shores and weathers ferocious storms in search of the fabled North-West Passage, Maria undergoes her own journey of self-discovery, determined to reclaim her identity and to forge her own future. But it is not easy being the only woman on a ship full of sailors, and it will take all of her courage and endurance to survive.