A young boy is torn between his love for his island home in the Sunderban region of West Bengal and the prospect of a scholarship to a prestigious college away in the city of Kolkata. When Neel hears that a tiger cub has escaped from a nearby nature reserve and is hiding somewhere on his island, he and his sister are involved in a secret race to prevent its capture by local men in the employ of a corrupt entrepreneur who aims to sell the cub on the black market for a high price. Moral dilemmas abound when the children realise their father has joined the hunters, tempted by the opportunity to pay for extra tuition to boost Neel's scholarship chances. The fast paced narrative dramatises the struggle to protect the fragile ecosytem of a tropical delta where the mangrove forests of its myriad islands shelter a rare and endangered population of Bengal tigers. An author's afterword provides information about related conservation projects and a glossary of unfamiliar words. A hugely enjoyable, easy to read novel, for Years 4 to 6, which manages nonetheless to introduce some complex issues around poverty, deforestation and climate change as they impact a special place and culture.