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CAPTAIN MARY, BUCCANEER ISBN 0-9679591-7-9 When most people think of pirates, they think of men, but some women - Anne Bonny and Mary Read, to name two - dared to thwart convention by turning to piracy. Captain Mary is a fictional composite of these two women, and she is just as ruthless and daring. When the story begins in 1721, Mary is already a legendary pirate hunted by the navies of several nations. She commands her own ship (the Fury), has created a financial empire, and has established a safe haven for all pirates on Cache Island. Freeing a traitorous doctor from a captured French ship and having an affair with him complicate Mary’s life. She must evade the French who hound her, while dealing with her three lovers and keeping her crew from mutinying. This is a well-researched tale that paints a harsh and dangerous way of life. At no point does the author glorify or romanticize piracy, a refreshing change from most pirate tales. Some readers may find the violence a bit too gruesome. Others may be uncomfortable with Mary’s choice of lovers, who also include a former slave who’s now her pilot and a woman who was a hostage but now runs an upscale brothel. This isn’t a story where the reader will warm up to any of the characters. Captain Mary, Buccaneer is for those seeking adventure on a rolling ship, the thrill of the chase and sea battles between the hunter and the hunted, or to be pirates in search of treasure. – Cindy Vallar, Historical Novels Review (May 2001) |