A swashbuckler set in the West Indies of the early 19th Century, THE WITCH FROM THE SEA is a love story, a coming-of-age adventure and an eccentric comedy of manners about a woman who runs with the pirates to free herself from the conventional "rules" of gender, race and class.

Tory Lightfoot, an orphan of mixed white and Mohawk blood, flees the stifling gentility of 1823 Boston for the freedom of the open sea. But the merchant ship on which she stows away is boarded by pirates off the coast of Cuba, and Tory is forced to join the pirate crew to save her life. Making herself useful as both log-keeper and spy, she begins to earn a measure of the independence she craves. But fate, fever and the relentless U. S. Navy West Indian Squadron close in, and Tory must risk her hard-won freedom to save the man she loves.
"I highly recommend this book to any lover of historical fiction."
— The Historical Novel Society Review
"The Witch From The Sea is that rare creation, an historical romance with guts as well as glamour. Wild-spirited Tory is an irresistible character."
— Nautical historian Joan Druett (She-Captains; Hen Frigates)
"I am in love with this book. A+."
— Reading Rocks / YA Fiction Review

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

WELCOME ABOARD!

Ahoy and welcome to new readers navigating their way here from Sarah Johnson's excellent historical fiction blog, Reading the Past. Sarah was kind enough to invite me to write a Guest Post on her blog today about the creation of this website as a place to delve more deeply into the background of Tory, my heroine from The Witch From the Sea, and the historical era that shapes her.

Tory has to cope with timeless issues that women always face— finding her own identity, making her place in the world and navigating her way through the often treacherous world of men. It's just that her universal journey takes place in a very specific setting—in a community of pirates.

But who was Tory before she joined the pirate crew? What events and circumstances influenced her in her formative years? To answer these questions, I'm posting occasional entries from Tory's Log, the purloined logbook into which she pours out the story of her life while on board the Blesséd Providence.

To start at the beginning, click on "March" in the Blog Archive at the end of the right-hand menu, or scroll all the way down to "Older Posts" at the bottom of this page.

Meanwhile, surf around, check out the reviews, read a sample of the book, and enjoy the adventure!
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