Jess Kidd has based The Night Ship on the true story of the Batavia, a Dutch ship. The events surrounding the Batavia have been described as the worst horror in maritime history. The author writes about Mayken who sets sail on the Batavia with her nursemaid to join her father in Batavia, a country in the Far East, after the death of her mother. Intertwined with Mayken's story is the story of Gil, a young boy who has been sent to live with his grandfather followng the death of his mother. His grandfather, Joss Hurley, is a fisherman on Beacon Island off the west coast of Australia. Beacon Island is also known as Batavia's Graveyard as it was off the coast of the island that the Batavia was shipwrecked. Scientists are on the island at the time Gil moves there. They are exploring the wreck of the Batavia and the island. This is a very readable mix of the stories of Mayken and Gil.