A cutter-rigged sloop sets sail for an end-of-season cruise. The captain is a middle-aged writer of some repute. His sole crewmate is his lover, friend, editor, and wife. The journey turns out to be not the modest three day cruise it first seems. As the reader sails through sun and storm, the captain spins the story of his life--an operatic saga that's part Verdi and part Puccini.