In book one of this classic gay pirate historical, originally published in the 1970s, the young Englishman Alan Steele yearns for adventure and a seafaring life. Even if the reality doesn't quite match up to his fantasies, there's still plenty of romance, danger and the tantalizing promise of wealth for a young man willing to take risks.
From Bristol, England to Spanish plantations in the Caribbean, Alan and his new friends Henry, Malcolm and Morgan go from cabin boys to captains packing lifetimes full of love, sex, injustice and rebellion into a few years, emerging tough—yet still tender—men who know what (and who) they want.
Pirates of the Caribbean has nothing on this rollicking novel of young men and the sea!
I want first to take revenge…” [declared Alan Steele.] “I would like nothing more than to strip those fancy clothes from every Spaniard in Hispaniola and force him to run about naked, cracking a whip across his back if he is not fast enough or if he does not keep himself stiff. It is a sad thing how quick they are with a whip or a cat if one is not to their standards.
“Their black hearts are known to the world through their blasted Inquisition and tortures. It makes it seem better to ram a cutlass into their guts like this!” he exclaimed… “I see a ship—it would be a private ship. It would be no buccaneer, for no governor would commission one in such deeds as this one would do. This ship would hoist a Jolly Roger at the sight of a Spanish vessel and set chase.
“The crew would be vicious fighters and their comrades would put the vessel adrift. Then comes the moment when grappling irons sail through the air and their ropes and chains go taut. The two ships meet with a loud crash!
“The Dons are well prepared: Their men stand with raised swords and pistols. I would be the first to board, bearing only cutlass held forward at the same stiff angle as my pego!”
He paused for effect and then asked, “Would they be as shattered as the ship about them while our cutlasses spilled their blood and split each in two?”
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