Cindy Vallar's Blog, page 32

Review of The Desert and the Sea

The Desert and the Sea: 977 Days Captive on the Somali Pirate Coast by Michael Scott Moore

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


As a reporter for Spiegel Online, Michael Moore covered a piracy trial – the first held in Germany in over four hundred years. What he learned piqued his curiosity to know more about Somali pirates, so he accompanied Ashwin Raman, a documentary maker and war correspondent for German TV, to the Horn of Africa in 2012. At the time of their arrival, the pirates held more than 700 sailors captive. They mostly hailed from Asian countries and were often referred to as the “forgotten hostages.”

The journey cost several thousand dollars for two weeks and a Somali elder from the same town as many of the pirates on trial arranged for Moore’s and Raman’s protection during their stay. Having dual citizenship, Moore traveled under a German passport, but was also an American. All went according to plan until one conversation with Somalis mentioned a pirate lord who wished to kidnap him. It was just a rumor, perhaps spread to raise their anxiety, but an incident soon after convinced both men it was time to go home. But Moore hadn’t yet interviewed any of the pirate defendants’ families, so while Raman prepared to leave Somalia, Moore decided to stay just a few days longer to conduct the interviews. Instead, he was forced to remain in country for nearly three years.

The ambush occurred soon after he left the airport following the departure of Raman’s plane. Moore was yanked from the car, beaten, his wrist broken, his glasses lost, and his belongings taken. The threat of dying became a constant. He was awakened during the night and moved from one location to another – sometimes staying in dilapidated houses, other times in the bush or on a captured vessel – while enduring sickness, beatings, chains, malicious guards, a thorough regulation of his daily life, few comforts, and a total inability to understand why. Although there were periods where he was the only hostage, he also spent a lot of time with a kidnapped Seychelles fisherman named Rolly Tambara, who became his best friend and often warned, “Do not make them angry, Michael.” (11) Yet small defiances, hope of rescue or escape, friendship, and a desire not to end up like his father helped Moore endure.

The Desert and the Sea is principally an account of Michael Moore’s time as a pirate captive, and yet it is so much more. He introduces readers to Somali culture and history, from colonial times to independence to devolution into a war-torn country rife with poverty and anarchy. This book is not just his story; it is also about other hostages, including those with whom he spent time and others rescued or lost during his captivity. More importantly, he shows the psychological, physical, and emotional impacts of long-term captivity, as well as the after effects he and other captives experienced following their releases. At the same time, he discusses growing up in California and coming to terms with his father’s suicide. He also recounts the often unseen side of kidnappings – what the victims’ families experience and the frustrating process of negotiating with pirates who demand exorbitant ransoms, such as the $20,000,000 they demanded for Moore’s release.

This is an up-close-and-personal, harrowing account of a pirate captive. Perhaps because he entwines confinement with personal episodes from his past, we get a miniscule taste of what he experienced in a way that makes it all too real. We also come away with an inkling of just how long 977 days under the constant threat of loss of life and liberty must have felt like. It is equal to other such accounts, yet it is also unique and unforgettable. As gritty as desert sand and as salty as the sea.




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Review of Apocalypse 1692

Apocalypse 1692: Empire, Slavery, and the Great Port Royal Earthquake by Ben Hughes

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Anyone with even the briefest knowledge of pirate history knows about Port Royal – the “wickedest city” in the world during the 17th century. Yet this is just a small part of its tempestuous history. Originally a Spanish possession, Jamaica fell to the English in 1655. In the early years, Port Royal became a haven for pirates and privateers, the only ones who could protect the island and its residents from the likes of Spain and France. As time passed, the sugar planters gained prominence and power sufficient to turn away the scoundrels and make Port Royal a place where respectable men and women settled, worked, and socialized. This prosperity, however, came at a price – the enslavement of thousands – and it is into this world that readers step when they enter Port Royal with the newly appointed governor, William O’Brien, the Earl of Inchiquin, in 1689.

When this short-tempered Irishman entered Port Royal, the pirates were long gone. Nor would he have suffered their presence for long; he had lost an eye while a captive of Algerine pirates, who finally exchanged him for a £70,000 ransom. The city was comprised of more than 2,000 structures, stone forts, and a number of streets, while on the outskirts of town were the sugar plantations. Port Royal’s population numbered 6,500, nearly 4,000 of which were white; the rest were mostly African slaves.

Although the opening chapters include a brief summary of Port Royal’s pirate history and her most famous buccaneer turned lieutenant-governor, Sir Henry Morgan, Apocalypse 1692 is predominantly a story of slavery, rebellion, and the cataclysmic events of earthquake, flood, and disease that began the slow demise of the wealthiest mercantile center in the New World. Hughes also includes information on the French invasion of the island in 1694 and the city’s decline to the small fishing village that it is today.

Using quotations from period documents and contemporary accounts, Hughes vividly and accurately recreates Port Royal and Jamaican life in the 17th century. He further enhances the experience with a chronology of events in early Jamaican history, illustrations, maps, and chapter notes, and includes a bibliography and index to assist readers in locating additional information or finding specific references within the text. Apocalypse 1692 is a worthy addition to any collection focusing on Jamaican history, slavery, and colonial life in the second half of the 1600s.




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Review of A Sloop of War

A Sloop of War by Philip K. Allan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


When HM Frigate Agrius limps into Barbados with a larger French warship as her prize, Vice-Admiral Benjamin Caldwell is both dismayed and delighted. Her damage is such that she must undergo immediate repairs rather than allowing the commander of the Windward Islands station to implement his plan to seize the French island of St. Lucia. The saving grace is that First Lieutenant Alexander Clay has acquired some intelligence that will aid in that endeavor, and his actions in battle against a mightier foe and assuming command after the death of his captain earn Clay a promotion to master and commander and a vessel of his own, the sloop of war Rush. Finally, he has climbed the first two rungs of the social ladder that may raise his status as a suitable husband in the eyes of his beloved’s guardian. But Lydia is in far off India and Clay can only dream of the day when they may once again reunite. Until then, he forges a plan with his sister in England. She will hide his letters in her packages to Lydia.

In the meantime, Clay sails the Rush to St. Lucia with orders to blockade one of the island’s ports. The sloop’s sluggish response does not bode well for the assignment, but there’s little he can do to remedy the mass of seaweed and barnacles that foul her hull as long as they are at sea. The lack of speed allows an enemy merchant ship to slip past Rush into the safety of the harbor protected by the guns of the French fort. Clay’s anger at losing a potential prize gives rise to a daring plan to remedy the loss – one that requires him to trust that his men can carry out it, for as captain, he must remain aboard Rush. The night attack proves successful and a prize crew sails the merchant ship back to Barbados. Clay follows at a slower pace, which proves far more dangerous than expected when they encounter a 74-gun Spanish man-of-war whose captain wants the Rush as his prize.

While the main focus of this second book in The Alexander Clay series focuses on the British invasion of St. Lucia in the 18th century, A Sloop of War is entwined with several other tales. Lieutenant Nicholas Windham still blames Clay and his best friend, John Sutton, for the death of his uncle, the captain of the Agrius, and is determined to make them pay one way or the other. Able Sedgwick, a runaway slave, seeks refuge at Spring Hill Plantation, where the enlightened owner has freed his slaves, while making himself and his family pariahs among the plantocracy. To thwart Barbadian law George Robertson arranges for Able to join the Royal Navy and sail aboard the Rush. An ardent abolitionist, Jacob Linfield, the Rush’s surgeon, strikes up a friendship with Robertson and becomes enamored with his younger daughter, who seems more attracted to John Sutton.

A Sloop of War is a fast-paced nautical adventure interwoven with land and sea actions, as well as civilian, political, and historical elements. Alexander Clay may be the main character of this book, but Able Sedgwick is a likable fellow who easily takes center stage more than once. His integration into the crew deftly shows life in the Royal Navy, while at the same time demonstrating both acceptance and prejudice among a cast of characters where each is uniquely drawn and rarely stereotypical. The energy in the confrontation between Windham and Clay feels like being shocked by static electricity. Several scenes are laced with humor, and the wonderfully descriptive comparison in the final engagement perfectly allows readers to imagine what is unfolding. Fans of nautical and naval fiction will enjoy this second entry in the series and will look forward to the next phase in Alexander Clay’s career and love life.




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Review of The Sugar Rebellion

The Sugar Rebellion by Lyle Garford

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Grenada is a dangerous place in which to live in 1795, especially if you are English and white, particularly if you are Ninian Home, the governor. Originally colonized by the French, the English acquired the island as a prize of war, but British politicians have shown little regard for these people’s interests and even less for the mulattos and slaves. One of the latter is Julien Fedon, a plantation owner whose father was white and mother was a former slave. His position within the original colonists, his influence among the free mulattos, and his land make him the ideal candidate to lead a rebellion. The day to strike comes in March when Governor Home ventures from the safety of St. George. If they can capture him, as well as other wealthy English families, the rebels can use them as a bargaining chip to gain their demands.

Crippling wounds ten years ago nearly ended the Royal Navy careers of Evan Ross and James Wilton until Horatio Nelson offered them the opportunity to work for the British spymaster in the West Indies. They have become adept at what they do and the war with France makes their services much in demand. Their most pressing assignment now concerns the rebellion on Grenada, which has reached a stalemate after ten months. They are to assist the acting governor and an incompetent colonel in the Royal Army to bring about an end to the situation. Against his better judgment, Evan allows his wife, a former slave, to accompany him because she’s good at making friends, discovering tidbits of information, and not getting caught. One of her first revelations is that a female rebel may be sneaking into and out of St. George to spy on the British.

A two-fold problem faces Evan and James. They no established network of underground contacts, and the acting governor fears that time is running out for the hostages – forty men, women, and children. The direness of the situation compels James to offer to infiltrate the rebels. If he’s caught, he will most likely die, but he has one advantage over all those privy to their plan. He’s black. When added to his friend’s skill with weapons and a passing knowledge of French, Evan realizes that James might just succeed.

But the rebels are leery of the Royal Navy deserter and one of them yearns to kill him outright. Julien enlists the aid of his female spy, who should do whatever she must to ascertain the truth – a painful, but necessary condition since he is in love with Sophie Ventour. And when James meets Sophie, she awakens feelings he thought long dead. Each day becomes a tightrope to walk where his heart must battle his conscience, as well as the French spies who are helping the rebels and Sophie’s brother, the rebel who wants to kill him.

The Sugar Rebellion is a fast-paced depiction of an actual, but little known, uprising. Garford could have delved deeper into the psychological ramifications that Evan, James, and Sophie face in their line of work, but his rendering of infiltration and spying deftly unfold. Fans of the Evan Ross series will enjoy this fourth book that brings to life this Grenadian rebellion from differing points of view and demonstrates that events are never just black or white or that honor is neither colorblind nor restricted to one gender.




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Review of Blackbeard's Sunken Prize

Blackbeard's Sunken Prize: The 300-Year Voyage of Queen Anne's Revenge by Mark Wilde-Ramsing

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Anyone familiar with golden age piracy has probably encountered two names: Blackbeard and Queen Anne’s Revenge. Three hundred years ago, on 10 June 1718, this pirate’s flagship ran aground in North Carolina waters. She remained lost to history until 21 November 1996 when Intersal, a treasure-salvage company, and North Carolina state archaeologists discovered a debris field of cannons and anchors on the seabed. To celebrate the tercentenary of this shipwreck, Wilde-Ramsing and Carnes-McNaughton bring together the findings from their investigation and interpretation of the artifacts of this vessel and the history of her legendary captain. This is not an academic treatise, but a book geared toward lay readers who want to know more about nautical life in the early 1700s, how archaeologists work, and what they discovered.

Blackbeard’s piratical career spanned a mere two years, yet even young children recognize his name. He was born Edward Thache (variant spellings include Thatch and Teach, but the pronunciation mirrors the latter) around 1683 in England, but his family soon moved to Jamaica where he grew up. During Queen Anne’s War (also known in America as the French and Indian War and in Europe as the War of the Spanish Succession), he served aboard a Royal Navy ship before becoming a privateer and later a pirate.

In November 1717, he and his men captured a French privateer-turned-slaver, which he appropriated as his flagship and renamed the Queen Anne’s Revenge. He also acquired fourteen additional crewmen – ten were forced, four joined willingly – and 157 Africans, some of whom would later be sold as slaves. Thus began six months of “hit and run” attacks, in concert with three smaller vessels, on merchant ships in the Caribbean and along the North American coast. At the time of his blockade of Charles Towne in South Carolina, the QAR was armed with forty guns, the same armament found on a fifth rate naval ship – a rare sight in American and Caribbean waters – and, in total, his four ships carried 300 to 400 pirates. Then one day in 1718, the QAR and another vessel grounded on a sandbar in Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina and five months later, Thache was dead and his men were captured or deceased.

This book is divided into eight chapters, each of which focuses on a particular aspect of the history, discovery, or legacy of the QAR.

Meeting a Pirate Captain
A Wild and Crazy Ride
The Prize Is Lost
Opening the Pirate’s Chest
Fragile Remains
An Eye to Detail
A Tale from the High Seas
The Legacy of the Sunken Prize

Interspersed through the chapters are color photographs, pictures, maps, graphs, and tables, as well as two-page, informative essays that examine a subtopic of a particular subject in greater depth.

A Dive to Remember
Queen Anne Appears aboard QAR
Sugar and Slavery
Infestation of Pirates in the New World
North Carolina Invaded by Virginia
Sand and Sonar Provide Unique Protection
Tribute to the Late Phil Masters
Pirate Archaeology and the Archaeology of Pirates
The Sweet Sound of Blackbeard’s Bell
Aprons of Lead
The Duties of a Ship Surgeon
Tales of Pirate Repasts
The Pirates “Stript Them Naked”
Dive Down!

These are written either by the book’s authors or other contributors. Enhancing the reading experience are end notes, which indicate consulted sources and add extra tidbits of information not found within the text, and an index.

Blackbeard’s Sunken Prize is a fascinating exploration of history and seafaring life, and a compelling collection of artifacts, what archaeologists do, and how they concluded that this was indeed the wreckage of Blackbeard’s pirate ship. Tantalizing tidbits of treasure abound within the pages of this comprehensive volume. Particularly intriguing are the artist’s rendering of excavation activities on two expeditions (page 65); the challenges faced in balancing public interest and researching the site; what materials have survived the passage of time and the environment’s impact on the wreckage; how archaeologists tracked down information to learn as much as possible about specific artifacts; learning what happened to various people after the wreck in 1718; and discovering that there is still more to excavate and analyze. Aside from being an invaluable addition to any collection on pirate history and Edward Thache, this volume serves as an excellent introduction to a career in archaeology and the legacy that the history, site, artifacts, and research provide to current and future generations.




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Review of Blackbeard -- Great Historical Novel

Blackbeard: The Birth of America by Samuel Marquis

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Once an officer in the Royal Navy, Edward Thache (pronounced “Teach”) has become disenchanted with the restrictions and interference the British government in London enacts on her colonies in the New World. Nor is he the only one who feels as he does. A growing portion of sailors, as well as some colonists, see themselves as Americans first and Englishmen second, and their dislike of these infringements and London’s unequal treatment of her colonies mirrors his own. Such thoughts seem foreign to the love of his life, Margaret of Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. When he announces his intention of sailing to Jamaica to become a privateer and salvage gold from the Spanish treasure fleet wrecked off the coast of La Florida, she sees nothing legal about such a venture. He will just follow in Captain Kidd’s footsteps – become a pirate and hang.

Gold and silver, as well as other riches strewn across the ocean floor in July 1715, lure many others to the wreck site. By the time Edward sets sail in September, arrives in Jamaica to get his commission from the governor, and then heads to the coast of La Florida, little remains to salvage. But Henry Jennings has a plan, and Edward and three other captains join forces to raid the Spanish wreck camp ashore. No sooner do they succeed in capturing the wealth they seek, than Edward realizes he has crossed the threshold Margaret predicted and is now a pirate. No longer able to return to Jamaica or Pennsylvania, the flotilla heads for New Providence; the British colony lacks a government and none seems forthcoming, so the pirates claim it for their own. Two principal factions form this pirate republic: those who follow Jennings, an upper-middle-class landholder from Bermuda, and the Flying Gang, whose leader is Benjamin Hornigold, whom Jennings considers beneath him, a common thief and wrecker with no scruples. Although Edward burns no bridges, he decides to sail in consort with Hornigold.

Alexander Spotswood, the lieutenant governor of Virginia, finds himself once again at odds with the House of Burgesses and other leading citizens of Williamsburg, who disagree with the king’s proclamations, especially those that endanger their livelihoods. Such thoughts not only rub Alexander the wrong way, they also border on being treasonous, for he is a stalwart Loyalist. Nor are they happy with his edicts, which ostensibly are to protect the colony, but always seem to profit him as much as the king and the absentee governor. They are at such loggerheads that they have a representative in London working to have Spotswood recalled.

While these hassles demand much of his attention, Alexander works on another plan – one that involves the treasure wrecks. His advisor cautions against doing so without permission, and once it arrives, Spotswood sends a friend and naval officer on a two-pronged mission: recover what silver and gold he can and then proceed to the Bahamas to determine a truer count of pirate numbers and learn as much as possible about their strengths, weaknesses, and whereabouts. This information will ultimately allow Alexander to devise a plan to eradicate the threat the pirates pose to his colony and trade. During the interim, he explores Virginia and oversees the building of his palace in the capital.

Sent by his owner, Tobias Knight, Caesar accompanies men from Bath County, North Carolina to the wreck site. Soon after he surfaces after one dive, pirates capture their vessel. When the captain discovers that Caesar is an educated slave, he invites Caesar to join the pirates and become a free man. It is an opportunity Caesar welcomes, and he quickly becomes Edward Thache’s trusted steward.

Having taken the path of piracy, Edward understands that he can’t go back to the life he knew. What he doesn’t expect is the lonesomeness that accompanies his new life. To visit his family in Jamaica or Margaret in Pennsylvania risks their lives as well as his own. Even though he is surrounded by his men, whose lives he won’t risk unless he can win, they cannot fill the void he feels until Samuel Bellamy arrives in New Providence. This audacious newcomer pirate had the temerity to steal Jennings’ ship laden with 30,000 pieces of eight after the pirate captain entrusted the vessel into his care. Sam sees himself as a Robin Hood of the sea, which strikes a chord with Edward, and their shared experience in the Royal Navy gives them a bond that allows a friendship to grow. The more time they spend in each other’s company, the more Edward comes to see Sam as a feisty younger brother. But Sam has no qualms about attacking ships of all nations, and this eventually causes a rift within the Flying Gang.

Another newcomer to the pirate republic is Stede Bonnet. Compared with other pirates, he is an odd fellow and his arrival is less than auspicious. Ever since he was a child, Stede dreamed of becoming a successful buccaneer like Sir Henry Morgan and Henry Avery. Death, boredom, a nagging wife, and a deep melancholy eventually lead him to forsake his family and follow his dream. Rather than acquire a ship and crew in normal pirate fashion, he buys the former and hires sailors to go on the account with him. But Stede hasn’t a clue how to sail the ship and his crew shows him little respect. Against their advice, he attacks a more powerful Spanish vessel, which causes the death of many of his men and nearly kills him. With no other options, his men sail to New Providence where the brethren there can deal with Stede.

Most of the Flying Gang pay him little heed, but Edward admires Bonnet’s sloop and has met this gentleman pirate once before, back when he was an honest man. Their similar backgrounds provide a common bond, and Edward offers to repair the sloop and acquire a crew and new captain for her. In exchange, he will give Stede his own cabin aboard his vessel and teach him about navigation and sailing.

In time, news reaches New Providence of Sam Bellamy’s death, King George’s pardon for pirates, and the imminent arrival of Governor Woodes Rogers who has orders to put an end to the pirate republic. Edward senses the tide is changing and the days of pirates are numbered. The more successful he becomes, the more infamous the newspapers paint him. The future looks bleak, but a small beacon of hope offers him way to regain respectability, to marry Margaret, and to settle down to raise a family. While he works toward making his hopes a reality, Spotswood is determined to bring about his demise no matter what.

This historical novel is a riveting portrayal of the legendary Blackbeard, two of the men who sailed with him, and their nemesis Alexander Spotswood. Marquis does a superb job incorporating historical research unveiled in the past two decades with global archival documentation to reconstruct a bygone era in places as they existed during the golden age of piracy. In nearly 400 pages, I came across only one short chapter where Thache’s actions seem out of character, but when you consider that the historical events are equally incongruous, Marquis’ retelling becomes somewhat plausible. The only low mark I give this book concerns the very small font size that was used. It’s a strain on the eyes and makes it easy to lose one’s place.

Marquis does a commendable job sifting through 300 years of myths and legends that surround Thache. The depth of his research and strict adherence to history’s timeline combine to add threads of authenticity to what is in reality a fictional story that allows us to see these men as living, thinking people with hopes and dreams and to understand what motivated them to do as they did. The manner in which Bonnet is depicted makes him less of the anomaly that he is in pirate history. Even though most readers know the outcome of the story as regards Blackbeard, the fight between Lieutenant Maynard and Thache is just as gripping as if we are present to witness the battle. Nor does the story end there. The last chapter where Caesar and Spotswood finally meet is a rousing scene that leaves readers feeling well satisfied and eager to learn more about these characters and piracy in general, not to mention looking forward to reading other stories written by this author.

While I might not see Blackbeard as the patriot that Marquis does, Blackbeard is one of those rare historical novels that transports us back to the past where Thache, Spotswood, Caesar, Bonnet, and all the other pirates and colonists lived in ways that make them truly memorable. Each scene is a you-are-there moment forever frozen in time and each character elicits an emotional response, be it good or bad, with which we can identify. Blackbeard is both thrilling and thought-provoking, and an adventure only a reader with an ardent dislike of historical fiction would want to miss.




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Review of The Sinking of the Vasa

The Sinking of the Vasa: A Shipwreck of Titanic Proportions by Russell Freedman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


King Gustav II wanted to dazzle and terrify the world, to show all the other countries how wealthy and skillful Sweden was. How better to show this than to build the most powerful warship ever known? For two years, shipwrights and other craftsmen worked to make his dream a reality, and when she was launched on Sunday, 10 August 1628, Vasa was indeed the crown jewel of the Swedish navy. Her masts rose high into the air, as high as a building fourteen stories tall. If she was placed at the end of one city street, she would reach nearly to the end of the block. She carried ten huge sails and rows of 64 bronze cannons lined each side of three different decks. She was not only a magnificent war machine, she was also a work of art. Painted and gilded sculptures and carvings – too many to count – decorated her hull.

The sailors and their families gathered on the decks for Vasa’s maiden voyage. People waved goodbye from the shore and some boarded smaller boats to follow the mighty warship. But then disaster struck. The sails caught the wind, Vasa heeled over on one side, and water poured through her open gunports. Many men, women, and children died as the ship sank below the waves. Those who survived and those ashore, including the king, began to ask questions. How could this happen? Why did she sink? Who was to blame?

Within the pages of this book the story of the Vasa and her fate unfold. The artwork is skillfully rendered and colorful, telling the story without graphically depicting the horror of this tragedy. The size of the illustrations gives readers a sense of just how big this warship was and they cover all the facets of her building, the launch, and her recovery. There is even a four-page spread showing how divers lifted Vasa from the seafloor three centuries after she sank. The narrative tells the same story, but in greater detail and in a compelling way that shows that other vessels slipped beneath the waves long before Titanic. At no time does the author talk down to his audience and the large font size makes the text easy to read. For those who might want to explore Vasa further, he provides a list of sources, including the website for the museum where visitors can view photographs of her, listen to an audioguide, and learn about exhibitions, artifacts, and preservation efforts.

The Sinking of the Vasa is not your typical picture book. It’s geared toward older children and includes far more text than normally appears in such volumes. Young readers interested in stories of the sea and sailing ships will be fascinated, and teachers will find this a useful enhancement to history lessons and for eliciting discussion in the classroom.




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Review of The Reaper

The Reaper by Michael Aye

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


After preventing pirates from capturing a convoy of East India Company ships, Captain Gilbert Anthony finds his life and career in the Royal Navy forever altered. Newspapers tout his bravery and honor throughout the kingdom. A grateful EIC honor him with gold coins and a ceremonial sword. The king bestows on him a knighthood. And his father entrusts him with training his half brother, Midshipman Gabriel Anthony, to become a naval officer. This last task also involves inheriting Gabe’s uncle, who seems to be Gabe’s protector, but Dagan is a skilled topman with sharp eyes, which make him as asset aboard Gil’s ship.

On his father’s death, Gil becomes the Earl of Deerfield, but the Admiralty has need of him far from England’s shores. Colonial grievances have been mounting and the possibility of war looms. A more immediate threat, however, are the pirates preying on merchant ships in the Caribbean and off the coast of America. With his recent success against such rogues, the Admiralty thinks he’s the best one to confront this menace. To aid in this endeavor Gil assumes command of HMS Drakkar, one of the realm’s largest frigates captured in 1759 from the French. Gabe will serve as the senior midshipman, and among the other gentlemen joining the crew are a young boy named Mr. Davy and Fourth Lieutenant Witzenfeld.

Soon after the frigate sails for Antigua, Witzenfeld reveals his true character – a cruel tyrant with a temper and a vulgar mouth to match. He continually persecutes Davy, which brings the lieutenant into contention with Gabe. Problems escalate, forcing Gil to find a tactful way to deal convince the crew that they can trust him while demonstrating no favoritism or permitting abuse.

A second complication comes when they sight two schooners plundering a barque. One woman who survives the attack is Lady Deborah McKean, to whom Gil finds himself attracted – a thought that irks him since she just witnessed the murder of her husband, as well as the brutal rapes and murders of the other women aboard the merchant ship. Turning his attention to his purpose for coming to the West Indies, Gil gathers what scant information he can of the attack, leaving him with more questions than answers. That trend continues after further encounters with the pirates, including rumors of a fifty-gun black ship with black sails. Might there be someone ashore in league with the pirates? Why do they rarely leave survivors, even those who might garner high ransoms? Or is there a more nefarious purpose behind the attacks? When a coded letter falls into Gil’s hands, he acquires vital information that might lead to answers . . . if they can decode the message.

First issued in 2005, The Reaper is the first book in The Fighting Anthonys series and this new edition has been revised. Readers are quickly drawn into this high seas adventure, rife with action and interwoven with romance. It even includes some original poetry by Aye. While no decisive indication of the time frame is provided, it occurs sometime after the Battle of Quiberon Bay (November 1759) and July 1775 when the epilogue takes place. If there is any drawback at all in the story, it is that it ends too soon, but The Reaper definitely snares the reader into wanting to read the second volume, HMS Seawolf. It is indeed a worthy addition to the growing collection of nautical fiction.




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Review of Adrift

Adrift: A True Story of Tragedy on the Icy Atlantic and the One Who Lived to Tell about It by Brian Murphy

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Ice in the North Atlantic in winter is normal, but when ships put into ports along the east coast of North America in 1856, those aboard reported alarming sightings. Not only were icebergs and ice slabs far more numerous and farther south than usually found, they were huge. Some were described as being wider that New York’s Central Park and taller than the clock tower of London’s Westminster Palace once these were completed. They proved equally dangerous. Between January and March, some 830 men, women, and children perished and their ships vanished. And from the four largest of these vessels, only one man survived.

The 1850s was a decade of turbulence – the Crimean War and conflicts between those favoring slavery and those who did not – and change. The heyday of sail had ebbed, giving rise to steamships that were faster and more luxurious and not dependent on the wind to propel them from one location to another. But few emigrants could afford these new vessels, so they travelled aboard wooden sailing ships to arrive at their destinations. One such vessel was the John Rutledge, a packet ship christened in Baltimore, Maryland just five years before she left Liverpool, England for New York City on 16 January 1856.

Howland & Ridgway owned the Rutledge and hired Alexander Kelley to captain the her. Although he had served on packet ships before, this was his first time in command on a transatlantic crossing. The passage to London went smoothly and among those who sailed with him were half-owner James Lawrence Ridgway, Alexander’s wife Irene, first mate Samuel Atkinson and his wife, boatswain William Ryan, and able seaman Thomas W. Nye. The last was not yet twenty-two, but came from a long line of New Bedford sailors, some of whom were well-known among the merchant trade. When it came time to return to New York, Kelley persuaded Irene to remain in Liverpool until spring, and Ridgway chose to sail home to his family aboard the Pacific, a luxury steamship that would leave later, but arrive earlier, in New York. Several new sailors joined the crew, among them John Daley from Scotland. Aside from her cargo, the Rutledge carried steerage passengers, including William Henderson and his family: a wife, two sons and two daughters (ranging in age from five to sixteen), as well as his sister and niece who was one year old.

When the Rutledge set sail, Captain Kelley was aware of the ice reports, but not having the advantage of today’s technology, the information they contained was outdated. A month later, he realized that navigating the North Atlantic would take much longer than anticipated because of the proliferation of ice and the frequent storms the ship encountered. Four days later, on the 20th of February, the packet ship hit an iceberg and began taking on water. Unable to stop the flow, everyone was ordered to abandon ship. Not everyone got off, although many did. For those in the lifeboats they hoped and prayed that another ship would soon come to their rescue.

This book is a heartrending and compelling account of shipwreck and survival. Maps, illustrations, occasional footnotes, an explanation of types of vessels, a family tree, bibliography, and index further enhance the reading experience. Murphy, a journalist for The Washington Post, pieced together the story of what happened and the people involved from family archives, civil and church documents, shipping ledgers, interviews, and published material found in collections in Europe and the United States. Much of the dialogue is skillfully imagined –fully explained in his introduction – and, when combined with the personal histories and period details, vividly recreates life and sailing in the middle of the 19th century. His primary purpose is to tell the story of one ship and the people aboard her, yet a secondary goal is for the book to serve as an elegy to all the forgotten men, women, and children who lost their lives. He accomplishes both with dignity and passion. Adrift is so riveting that even in the midst of summer heat, the wintry cold seeps so deeply into your bones that not even the warmest wool will dispel the bleak aloneness of being surrounded by water and ice in a small boat where the only other occupants are the dead.




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Review of The Pirate's Duty

The Pirate's Duty: A SWASHBUCKLING Romance by Katherine Bone

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


It’s only a matter of time. Sooner or later he will come and his price will be high. But Oriana Thorpe doesn’t regret her betrayal. What she regrets is that her dreams won’t come true.

Oriana owns the Marauder’s Roost, an inn that’s been in her family for years. At twenty-three, she has seen more violence and bloodshed than she cares to remember, but she and her brother are the last living members of a smuggling family, who plied their trade with ruthless abandon, off the coast of Cornwall. Her brother, Charles – perhaps the most depraved – will never forgive her for choosing strangers over blood, but she could not allow him to kill two innocent women. She did so to save him, but as far as he’s concerned, Oriana betrayed him and therefore must pay. Until then, his spies watch and wait for his return.

The day Captain Carnage – the alias of Charles Thorpe – kidnapped his sister, Captain Pierce Walsingham’s life changed in ways he never dreamed. It’s 1809 and he is no longer a decorated revenue officer. In fact, he died when his ship sank during a battle with Carnage – at least the majority of Cornwall and his parents believe this to be so. Now, he is the infamous pirate known as the Black Regent, assisting the downtrodden of the local villages. He, too, waits for Carnage’s return. Until that nefarious fiend dies, Pierce’s sister will never be safe – she witnessed his crimes and lived to tell about it. Nor is Oriana safe, and Pierce promised to protect her as well. Two of his men are with her, and once his plan is put bears fruit, he will don another disguise and stay close to her. What he doesn’t know is whether he can trust her. After all, her family operated a successful and brutal smuggling business and he still has not located the gold her brother left at the Roost. While his mind distrusts her, his heart betrays him. No good can come from this mutual attraction. She values honesty above all things, and he’s been telling lies since the day they met.

This third tale in the Regent’s Revenge series focuses on consequences of one’s actions and how the past very much shapes a person. It’s a classical struggle of good versus evil, and Bone pulls no punches in either her description of life in isolated Cornwall when times are tough or its brutality. There are poignant moments that will bring heartache and tears. There are also passionate episodes where hope and the desire for dreams fulfilled never dies. She imbues each character with a mix of good and bad traits, making them human and alive. The Pirate’s Duty shines like sunlight sparkling on a gemstone and is perhaps the best so far in this pirate series.




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