The Blurb
The Barbary Coast, 1621. A mysterious vessel floats silently on the water. It is known only as the Ghost Ship. For months it has hunted pirates to liberate those enslaved during the course of their merciless raids, manned by a courageous crew of mariners from Italy and France, Holland and the Canary Islands.
But the bravest among them are not who they seem. The stakes could not be higher. If arrested, they will be hanged for their crimes. Can they survive the journey and escape their fate?
A sweeping and epic love story, ranging from France in 1610 to Amsterdam and the Canary Islands in the 1620s, The Ghost Ship is a thrilling novel of adventure and buccaneering, love and revenge, stolen fortunes and hidden secrets on the High Seas. Most of all, it is a tale of defiant women in a man’s world.
My Review
Kate Mosse has to be one of the biggest advocates of female authors worldwide but she is also one of our best historical authors.
The Ghost Ship is the third in her series of novels featuring the Jouberts. Now before you say ‘I haven’t read the other two’ fear not, it was definitely not necessary.
A strong family with a rich heritage Louise Joubert appeared to be the last. She was wealthy, intelligent, independent and after reading this book one of my all time favourite heroines.
Mosse portrayed a woman who lived in a man’s world, land the place she so disliked, her ship and the open seas her home, her comfort. Respected by those she worked with, hated by those who felt threatened, Mosse had created one hell of a woman.
Yes, she was strong, brave, but Mosse didn’t let Louise lose her femininity, a sense of vulnerability, the occasional lapse in confidence. It was her right hand person, her lover, Gilles, who Mosse used beautifully to bring out Louise’s more genteel side.
They were a formidable team as they waged battle against pirates freeing their human cargo destined for slavery. Her crew were full of misfits, their loyalty and ingenuity in the tightest spots provided pure drama that you couldn’t help but admire.
When the worst happened and Louise found herself cornered by those who despised her, her life in danger, the loyal Giles stepped up.
Mosse showed a person steadfast in their determination to put his Captain back on board her ship. It was a tense, nail biting race against time that saw the furtive turning of pages at great speed to get it the end and hope for a happy conclusion.
The historical detail was superb, the sense of time and place beautifully captured. I didn’t want to use the word swashbuckling, but you can’t not when your imagination runs wild, images of ships on the big seas battling it out to come out victorious.
A fantastic novel and long life Louise Joubert piratess of her time.
I would like to thank Mantle Books for a copy of The Ghost Ship to read and review and to Random Things Tours for inviting My Bookish Blogspot to participate in the blogtour.
About the author
Kate Mosse is an award-winning novelist, playwright, essayist and non-fiction writer, the author of eight novels and short story collections, including the multimillion-selling Languedoc Trilogy, The Burning Chambers Series and number one bestselling Gothic fiction The Winter Ghosts and The Taxidermist’s Daughter. Her books have been translated into thirty-seven languages and published in more than forty countries. The Founder Director of the Women’s Prize for Fiction, she is the Founder of the global Woman In History campaign.