 Pirates and Privateers
The History of Maritime
Piracy
Cindy Vallar, Editor
& Reviewer
P.O. Box 425,
Keller, TX 76244-0425
Books for
Adults ~ Nautical Fiction
An Inception of Piracy
By Michael Calpino
J&M Publishing, 2018, paperback ISBN
978-1300266440, US $17.99
e-book ISBN 978-1387367108, $3.99 & hardcover ISBN
978-1257955824, $34.99
In the midst of the War of the
Spanish Succession, Giovanni Bartolli
sails as his father’s emissary to England
to negotiate a trade deal with the Royal
Navy. Although he has often accompanied
his father on prior missions, this is the
first opportunity in which success rides
on Giovanni’s shoulders, and he’s
determined not to disappoint his father.
But England is a foreign place and bad
advice leads him astray. The Blue Pearl is
not an accommodation for a reputable
businessman, especially for one as
inexperienced as him. Carousing with the
inn’s patrons leads to overindulgence,
which befuddles his brain. When he
ventures outside, he is attacked and
robbed of money and clothes – anything of
value. Upon waking, he encounters a press
gang that cares little about who he is and
why he’s in England. All that matters is
he’s young, able to work, and has no
impediments.
He soon finds himself aboard HMS Vitol,
where insubordination is not tolerated and
he feels the sting of the cat across his
back. It matters not that he is innocent
of the charge; the boatswain dislikes
impressed men and Giovanni in particular.
A brief respite from the persecution comes
when the ship founders during a storm.
Giovanni and some of the friends he has
among the other forced men survive, but so
does the boatswain and his mates. Another
English warship rescues them and, for a
brief time, Giovanni sees a different side
of the navy since this captain treats men
fairly and runs a happy vessel. All goes
reasonably well until an accident kills
one well-liked seaman and maims another.
The men from the Vitol are
shunned and the tension thickens. Only the
fortuitous appearance of an enemy ship
resolves the problem; the English win and
the Vitols board the prize and sail for
home.
Another chance encounter with the enemy
results in the destruction of the prize.
Giovanni fashions a raft from among the
debris littering the ocean. He also
rescues two friends, one of whom is badly
wounded. After days at sea, a merchant
ship is sighted. A small lie is soon
uncovered, leading to charges of desertion
and mutiny against Giovanni. The moment
the vessel docks in Virginia, the captain
vows he will turn Giovanni over to the
authorities and see justice at the end of
a noose visited upon him.
An Inception of Piracy opens with
hope and opportunity that is sabotaged by
an unfortunate misstep with unexpected and
dire consequences that forever change
one’s future path. Each inciting incident
intensifies the downward spiral into
piracy, yet as anger rises, hope
restrains. Calpino vividly recreates the
time period and his knowledge of the past
paints a realistic backdrop in which the
story unfolds and the characters come to
life. This historical novel is a gripping
portrayal spiced with deep friendships,
unexpected romance, and one man’s
psychological struggle to comprehend the
impossible.
Review Copyright ©2018 Cindy Vallar
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