The release date for the English version of 'Pirate Latitudes' by
Michael Crichton is Nov 2009. If you enjoy this novel, it is available for buy as a paperback from Barnes & Noble or Indigo, as an ebook on the Amazon Kindle store, or as an audiobook on Audible.
In 1665, Jamaica is a little colony that is a ragged outpost of the English crown fending against the overwhelming might of the Spanish empire. The capital of Jamaica, Port Royal, is a cutthroat town of pubs, grog stores, and seedy dwellings without the London luxury; a knife in the back or dysentery may take your life here in an instant. If Captain Charles Hunter follows the island's rules, however, it might also lead to wealth. Gold in the hands of the Spanish is free gold, in the name of His Majesty King Charles II of England. And those who take matters into their own hands make law in the New World.
The Spanish treasure galleon El Trinidad, just arrived from New Spain, is reportedly waiting for repairs at the neighboring seaport of Matanceros. Strongly defended, the unassailable Spanish garrison is kept safe by the bloodthirsty Cazalla, a personal favorite of King Philip IV. Hunter gathers a roughneck gang with the governor's support in order to sneak onto the enemy island and take control of the galleon and its wealth of Spanish treasure. Hunter will lose many men on the raid, which is as dangerous as the violent stories of Matanceros promise. Once he reaches the island's shoreline, the only things standing between him and the wealth are the deep forest and the firepower of Spanish army.
Hunter takes over El Trinidad and escapes Cazalla's lethal grasp with the assistance of his sly gang, causing a great deal of destruction in his wake. However, his problems are far from over...