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

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

TORY'S WORLD

Want to see what Tory's world actually looks like?


Trim your sails for my new board for The Witch From the Sea on Pinterest!


Okay, it's true, Tory, Jack, Captain Hart, Nada, and all the rest are fictional characters. (As far as I know...)


But  the West Indies of the 1820s was, of course, a real place, full of danger, adventure, social ferment, and the siren song of opportunity—legal and otherwise.


On my Pinterest board, you'll find maps, vintage illustrations, and a selection of objects from the period.

Pulp novel, ca. 1930

Also, take a look at some of my favorite female pirates, both historical and fictional.


(Like the 19th Century engraving of the notorious Mary Read, above, who allegedly bared her breast to prove her gender to the surprised opponent she'd just mortally wounded in a duel.)


Also, check out some wild items of female pirate ephemera, from pulp book covers to cigarette cards to fashion, that I've discovered while cruising around the Interwebs.


Every generation has its own ideal vision of a pirate lass!


My mission is to find and post as many as I can! Stay tuned...
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