He turned: the scapegoat was pointing a fleshy arm directly down at the water, and following it Roland saw a mass of pale, stringy lines suddenly seething up from the deeps to surface all about the ship.
He froze in disbelief. It couldn't be--
But then the cry went up from the main deck.
'Ropes! White ropes!'
And so the horror began.

A ship and its crew held in thrall by an ancient sea creature, a young girl blinded by foresight, a scapegoat with a gift to foresee death - these haunting short stories set in the Four Isles, the setting of Andrew McGahan's highly acclaimed Ship Kings series, tell fascinating tales of tall ships, ancient grudges and the full significance of the meaning of indefinite survival in an ocean that holds as many mysteries as it does drops of water.