Pirate Latitudes
By Michael Crichton
(Harper, Hardcover, 9780061929373, 320pp.)
Publication Date: November 24, 2009
Other Editions of This Title: eBook, Large Print (November 24, 2009), Compact Disc (November 24, 2009)
Categories: General
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Jamaica in 1665 is a rough outpost of the English crown, a minor colony holding out against the vast supremacy of the Spanish empire. Port Royal, Jamaica′s capital, a cut-throat town of taverns, grog shops, and bawdy houses, is devoid of London′s luxuries; life here can end swiftly with dysentery or a dagger in your back. But for Captain Edward Hunter it is a life that can also lead to riches, if he abides by the island′s code. In the name of His Majesty King Charles II of England, gold in Spanish hands is gold for the taking. And law in the New World is made by those who take it into their hands.
Word in port is that the Spanish treasure galleon El Trinidad, fresh from New Spain, is stalled in nearby Matanceros harbor awaiting repairs. Heavily fortified, the impregnable Spanish outpost is guarded by the blood-swiller Cazalla, a favorite commander of King Philip IV himself. With the governor′s backing, Hunter assembles a roughneck crew to infiltrate the enemy island and commandeer the galleon, along with its fortune in Spanish gold. The raid is as perilous as the bloody legends of Matanceros suggest, and Hunter will lose more than one man before he finds himself on the island′s shores, where dense jungle and the firepower of Spanish infantry are all that stand between him and the treasure.
With the help of his cunning crew, Hunter hijacks El Trinidad and escapes the deadly clutches of Cazalla, leaving plenty of carnage in his wake. But his troubles have just begun. . . .
Michael Crichton's novels include Next, State of Fear, Prey, Timeline, Jurassic Park, and The Andromeda Strain. He is also known as a filmmaker and the creator of ER. One of the most popular writers in the world, he has sold over 150 million books, which have been translated into thirty-six languages; thirteen have been made into films. He remains the only writer to have had the number one book, movie, and TV show at the same time. Pirate Latitudes was discovered as a complete manuscript in his files after his death in 2008.
Last year, when the best-selling novelist Michael Crichton died, he left behind a completed novel. It's set in the mid-17th century Caribbean. And it's about pirates. Alan Cheuse reviews the Michael Crichton novel Pirate Latitudes. More at NPR.org
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Last year, when the best-selling novelist Michael Crichton died, he left behind a completed novel. It's set in the mid-17th century Caribbean. And it's about pirates. Alan Cheuse reviews the Michael Crichton novel Pirate Latitudes. More at NPR.org
NPR Audio Player Requires Flash Upgrade: Please upgrade your plug-in to view this content.
Last year, when the best-selling novelist Michael Crichton died, he left behind a completed novel. It's set in the mid-17th century Caribbean. And it's about pirates. Alan Cheuse reviews the Michael Crichton novel Pirate Latitudes. More at NPR.org
NPR Audio Player Requires Flash Upgrade: Please upgrade your plug-in to view this content.
"The plot sucks you in like the giant kraken monster that nearly sinks our hero's galleon."
-Benjamin Svetsky, Entertainment Weekly
"Offers unexpected turns and plenty of yo ho ho's."
-Richard Eisenberg, People (3 out of 4 stars)
"It's not an ironic pirate novel. It's not a pirate novel with a secret gimmick. It's simply an entertaining tale filled with crafty privateers, despicable villains, treasure hoards, double crosses and a sea monster. Go figure."
-Michael Berry, San Francisco Chronicle
"Pirates Latitudes has the loot: Gore, sex, action.. A lusty, rollicking 17th century adventure.. History as entertainment.. Crichton has done his homework."
-Bob Minzesheimer, USA Today
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