"Now Susan,' Mother said, 'And you too, John. No night sailing...No going outside the harbour...And back the day after tomorrow...Promise.' But promises can't always be kept. Within twenty-four hours John, Susan, Titty and Roger find themselves fighting a night gale in the treacherous waters of the North Sea, adrift and in the main shipping lanes. Suddenly, it's real adventure and only their sailing skills can help them now..."

Reviews

"Arthur Ransome's adventure books are an institution, and Christmas is the richer because of his invention, gravity, and solid matter" (Times Literary Supplement )

"The seventh of the Arthur Ransome books about the Swallows and the Amazons, and I really think it is the best" (The Sunday Times )

"The most exciting of the whole Swallows and Amazon series" (New Statesman )