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

Sunday, July 23, 2017

SALTY POD




That charming scalawag, Phil Johnson, proprietor of the salty piratical podcast, Under The Crossbones, interviewed me last year about my contributions to pirate lore, Alias Hook, and The Witch From the Sea.



Last week, he reached the milestone of Episode 100! And he generously invited me to participate in the celebration with a brief update on what I've been up to since.

And I wasn't the only one. This graphic hints at some of the novelists, historians, and musicians he's had on the air who are filling him in on what's new with their various swashbuckling enterprises.

So, hoist the colors, and let's wish Phil fair winds and fortune for his next 100 episodes!