The events described in the book take place in 1827, during the Battle of Navarino, which tilted the balance in favor of the independence of the newly formed Greek state from the Ottoman Empire. We follow the adventures of Nikolaos Starkos, captain of the ship Karystos, who decides to join the pro-Turkish pirates who ravage the Mediterranean, and his clash with the philhellene Frenchman Henri d'Albare, who has been commissioned by the Greek government to fight the pirates.