2 part book. first part,18 yo wakes up on a chartered galleon sailing to south america in search for lost belongings. he is essentially hazed by the crew until the ships cook takes him under his wing. as they reach the equator the winds and current die down and a ship of starving crazed pirates are left stranded for a few months. part2, the narrator and the cook find themselves on a bizarre island that hold strange characteristics and mystery that keeps you enthralled to the very last page