Sailing in the wake of his father Captain Jonathon Bourke, Senior—a no nonsense seafarer and adventurer—Jonathon Bourke sails into a storm of trouble, started by seducing the wife of the self-important, arrogant French Ambassador to the South Pacific, Monsieur Du Bellay. But avoiding the diplomat was not an easy task, especially when the Frenchman hears word that Bourke is on the trail of a rare and extremely valuable pearl known as the Tear of the Eclipse, stolen from Tahiti by Captain James Cook's crew back in 1777.

In the search for the pearl, Bourke spends time behind bars at the famed Isle of Pines prison, escaping during a devastating cyclone.

And whilst the ambassador is not as honest as his position demands, with nefarious contacts in Australia and assisting with the sale of illegal contraband, Bourke and his crew have been smuggling home distilled rum to America during prohibition, angering the Americans.

The scene is set for explosive action on the high seas. In the short period Bourke manages to allude the Frenchman, he falls madly in love with a beautiful islander, Kimtasu, the daughter of chief Moimango. And while saving the island's population from a catastrophic volcano eruption, he almost loses his life in the pursuit of the priceless pearl.