"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." With these words, the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu might as well have been thinking on the adventures Jackie Tempo, who is on an unusual quest to find her parents.

Jackie Tempo is a lonely teen who lives in a remote New England town. She mourns her parents who died in a car crash when she was young. In the mansion she shares with her eccentric Aunt Isobel, Jackie discovers a mysterious text, which transports her back in time to Ming China. Jackie is stunned to find herself on a Portuguese caravel - and the ship's doctor is her...