Pirates and Privateers
The History of Maritime Piracy

Cindy Vallar, Editor & Reviewer
P.O. Box 425, Keller, TX  76244-0425

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Although he begins life as a Mohawk, Henry Doyle leaves his homeland to become a mercenary and eventually becomes El Habibka, war leader of the Tuaregs in North Africa. His service as a spy for the British makes him the ideal contact for William Eaton, who intends to locate Hamet Karamanli and reinstate him as the Pasha of Tripoli. They face many obstacles, not the least of which is Tobias Lear, the U.S. General Consul for North Africa, who is vehemently opposed to the mission and its success.
 
Peter Kirkpatrick, captain of the USS Eagle, is one of the officers chosen to accompany Eaton. If they succeed in capturing Derna, the Tripolitans will abandon their allegiance to Hamet’s brother and follow him. Patrick is assigned the task of intercepting a consignment of jewels that will provide sufficient funds to finance the mission. But French spies intend to force him to relinquish the treasure, then kill Patrick and his men. An unknown group, however, intervenes and steals the jewels first. The loss presents problems, but Eaton is determined to carry out his mission. First they must cross 500 miles of desert, with limited access to water, under a blazing sun, accompanied by an army that consists of seven Marines, European mercenaries, and Arabs, who know that when they reach their destination, they will face an enemy ten times their number.
 
Several years ago, I read Richard Zacks’ The Pirate Coast: Thomas Jefferson, the First Marines, and the Secret Mission of 1805. It is a factual account of Eaton’s undertaking and the first time that U.S Marines fought on foreign soil, an event immortalized in the “Marines’ Hymn.” Behr’s fictional account captivates the reader and brings to life this remarkable undertaking, providing a gripping tale as intricately woven as a spider’s web. The depth and breadth of his research shines through, yet is never presented as a history lesson. The characters are diverse and well drawn, while ably demonstrating the machinations of various governments that work with and against each other. To further enhance your reading experience, Behr sets the stage with an introduction and who’s who of characters. The book ends with a historical epilogue, an interesting set of acknowledgements, an appendix detailing his source material, short biographies of the historical people who appear in the novel, and a brief explanation of the Sufism which Doyle practices. Behr also includes an excerpt from the next book in the series, which promises to be just as exciting an adventure as Blood Brothers.  

View the trailer and read an excerpt

Review Copyrighted ©2011 Cindy Vallar

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