The Custom of the Sea: A Shocking True Tale of Shipwreck, Murder, and the Last Taboo

The inspiration for the Broadway musical Swept Away: “An exciting, historically accurate depiction of a disastrous 19th-century sea journey.” —Publishers Weekly

In the late 1800s, the Essex coast of England was known for producing the toughest, most skilled seamen. Tom Dudley was one of them. Though a well-known and respected figure among the local yacht-racing community, he had little experience of deep-sea sailing. Still, Tom agreed to sail more than ten thousand miles to deliver a yacht...