Pirates of Pensacola

Pirates of Pensacola
Author: Keith Thomson
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2005-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9780312334994

The Cooke and Hood families have been at each other's throats since the Spanish Main days. The latest chapter in their piratic rivalry takes place in 2004, when an old treasure map turns up. None of this seems to matter to Morgan Cooke, a cowardly, landlubbing accountant entirely ignorant of his heritage until his estranged father, Isaac, in need of crewmen, kidnaps him and thrusts him into the fray. When Morgan wakes up on a boat in the middle of the Caribbean, he learns that piracy still flourishes, albeit with far more discretion than in the old days--pirates disguise their fast boats as shrimpers or tugs--but with no less bloodshed. Judging even a shot at riches vastly preferable to a return to his lonely, fluorescent-lit work station existence, Morgan pierces his ear, dons the eye patch and peg leg, and set sail for glorious adventure.

Born to Be Hanged

Born to Be Hanged
Author: Keith Thomson
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2023-05-16
Genre:
ISBN: 9780316703635

Discover the "fascinating and outrageously readable" account of the roguish acts of the first pirates to raid the Pacific in a crusade that ended in a sensational trial back in England--perfect for readers of Nathaniel Philbrick and David McCullough (Douglas Preston, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lost City of the Monkey God) The year is 1680, in the heart of the Golden Age of Piracy, and more than three hundred daring, hardened pirates--a potent mix of low-life scallywags and a rare breed of gentlemen buccaneers--gather on a remote Caribbean island. The plan: to wreak havoc on the Pacific coastline, raiding cities, mines, and merchant ships. The booty: the bright gleam of Spanish gold and the chance to become legends. So begins one of the greatest piratical adventures of the era--a story not given its full due until now. Inspired by the intrepid forays of pirate turned Jamaican governor Captain Henry Morgan--yes, that Captain Morgan--the company crosses Panama on foot, slashing its way through the Darien Isthmus, one of the thickest jungles on the planet, and liberating a native princess along the way. After reaching the South Sea, the buccaneers, primarily Englishmen, plunder the Spanish Main in a series of historic assaults, often prevailing against staggering odds and superior firepower. A collective shudder racks the western coastline of South America as the English pirates, waging a kind of proxy war against the Spaniards, gleefully undertake a brief reign over Pacific waters, marauding up and down the continent. With novelistic prose and a rip-roaring sense of adventure, Keith Thomson guides us through the pirates' legendary two-year odyssey. We witness the buccaneers evading Indigenous tribes, Spanish conquistadors, and sometimes even their own English countrymen, all with the ever-present threat of the gallows for anyone captured. By fusing contemporaneous accounts with intensive research and previously unknown primary sources, Born to Be Hanged offers a rollicking account of one of the most astonishing pirate expeditions of all time.

Pirate Alley

Pirate Alley
Author: Stephen Coonts
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Total Pages: 371
Release: 2013-05-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1250023319

Grafton and Carmellini are back and joined by the Navy SEALs to battle terrorists on the high seas in Pirate Alley, an action-packed tale by New York Times bestseller Stephen Coonts A luxurious vacation cruise to the exotic locales of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden turns into a nightmare for passengers and crew when their ship is suddenly attacked and captured by a band of bloodthirsty Somali pirates. An initial rescue mission ends in failure; the decks are covered in blood. Unless they are paid a ransom of $200 million dollars within seven days, the pirates threaten to execute all their hostages. But information gleaned from a captured Al Qaeda operative indicates that there is a far more dangerous conspiracy afoot. Once the ransom is paid, Islamic militants intend to swoop in and slaughter the passengers in an orgy of terror, hoping to provoke a massive American military response that will set the Muslim world aflame. Jake Grafton is assigned to negotiate with the brutal pirate chief while his right hand man, Tommy Carmellini, and a team of CIA and Navy SEAL operatives mount an undercover operation to save the hostages and keep the U.S. from being maneuvered into a murderous war.

The Pirates Laffite

The Pirates Laffite
Author: William C. Davis
Publisher: HMH
Total Pages: 735
Release: 2006-05-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 0547350759

An “engrossing and exciting” account of legendary New Orleans privateers Pierre and Jean Laffite and their adventures along the Gulf Coast (Booklist, starred review). At large during the most colorful period in New Orleans’ history, from just after the Louisiana Purchase through the War of 1812, privateers Jean and Pierre Laffite made life hell for Spanish merchants on the Gulf. Pirates to the US Navy officers who chased them, heroes to the private citizens who shopped for contraband at their well-publicized auctions, the brothers became important members of a filibustering syndicate that included lawyers, bankers, merchants, and corrupt US officials. But this allegiance didn’t stop the Laffites from becoming paid Spanish spies, disappearing into the fog of history after selling out their own associates. William C. Davis uncovers the truth about two men who made their names synonymous with piracy and intrigue on the Gulf.

Pirates, Raiders & Invaders of the Gulf Coast

Pirates, Raiders & Invaders of the Gulf Coast
Author: Ryan Starrett
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Total Pages: 176
Release: 2023-08-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 1439679002

Authors Ryan Starrett and Josh Foreman chart a Gulf Coast odyssey with French adventurers, English colonists, Spanish Dons, American filibusters, Indian warriors, African Maroons, and pirate outlaws . For centuries, the shoreline between Galveston and Tallahassee was marked by the desperate deeds of men who fought for God, gold, and glory, as well as those who simply wanted to be left alone. Regardless of motive, the Gulf Coast has seen its share of seafaring warriors and miscreants, from the Tattooed Serpent and Osceola to Iberville and Davy Crockett. It harbored privateers and pirates such as William Augustus Bowles and the Brothers Laffite .

The Memoir of Lieutenant Dumont, 1715–1747

The Memoir of Lieutenant Dumont, 1715–1747
Author: Jean-François-Benjamin Dumont de Montigny
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 478
Release: 2013-11-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 1469608650

In 1719, Jean-Francois-Benjamin Dumont de Montigny, son of a Paris lawyer, set sail for Louisiana with a commission as a lieutenant after a year in Quebec. During his peregrinations over the next eighteen years, Dumont came to challenge corrupt officials, found himself in jail, eked out a living as a colonial subsistence farmer, survived life-threatening storms and epidemics, encountered pirates, witnessed the 1719 battle for Pensacola, described the 1729 Natchez Uprising, and gave account of the 1739-1740 French expedition against the Chickasaws. Dumont's adventures, as recorded in his 1747 memoir conserved at the Newberry Library, underscore the complexity of the expanding French Atlantic world, offering a singular perspective on early colonialism in Louisiana. His life story also provides detailed descriptions and illustrations of the peoples and environment of the lower Mississippi valley. This English translation of the unabridged memoir features a new introduction, maps, and a biographical dictionary to enhance the text. Dumont emerges here as an important colonial voice and brings to vivid life the French Atlantic.

The Moorish Essence of Pensacola

The Moorish Essence of Pensacola
Author: Jeremie Samuel
Publisher: CreateSpace
Total Pages: 60
Release: 2015-09-23
Genre:
ISBN: 9781514370605

"Discover hidden treasures of culture in Pensacola through the Moorish Essence of America's first port city." The Moorish Essence of Pensacola indulges in the rich history of exploration and cultural exchange in the port city. Jeremie Samuel, the author, born in Pensacola, analyzes the congruent climate and ecology which cultivates Pensacola in the likeness of Moorish Spain and Morocco. Explorers embarked in quest of the rich territory of Pensacola and Estevanico the Moor, born in Morocco reached her shores in 1528. The Moorish Essence of Pensacola also manifests through the Spanish explorer, Tristan de Luna, who landed at Pensacola Bay on August 14, 1559. He was born in the Moorish province of Borobia in Northern Spain, and 100 Moors were in his fleet on the expedition to Pensacola. The layout of the city's main districts of Cordova, Seville, and Granada correspond with the great, ancient cities of Cordova, Seville, and Granada in Moorish Spain.

Once A Spy

Once A Spy
Author: Keith Thomson
Publisher: Anchor
Total Pages: 482
Release: 2011-01-25
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0307473147

With wit, adventure, and style to spare, this gripping and utterly original thriller is "a spy story that sticks" (The Dallas Morning News). When Charlie Clark takes a break from his latest losing streak at the track to bring home his Alzheimer’s-addled father, Drummond, they’re attacked by two mysterious shooters. At first, Charlie thinks his Russian “creditors” are employing aggressive collection tactics. But once Drummond effortlessly hot-wires a car, Charlie discovers that his unassuming father was actually a deep cover CIA agent . . . and there is extremely sensitive information rattling around in his troubled mind. Now the CIA wants to “contain” him, so the two embark on a wild chase through the labyrinthine world of national security that will force them to confront unspeakable danger, dark conspiracies, and what it means to be a father and son.

The Book of Buried Treasure

The Book of Buried Treasure
Author: Ralph Delahaye Paine
Publisher: Good Press
Total Pages: 311
Release: 2019-11-21
Genre: Fiction
ISBN:

"The Book of Buried Treasure" by Ralph Delahaye Paine. Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.

Creepy Florida

Creepy Florida
Author: Mark Muncy
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Total Pages: 156
Release: 2009-09-01
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 1439668094

The author of Eerie Florida shares more dark tales from across the Sunshine State in this illustrated guide to local legends and haunted sites. Author Mark Muncy and photographer Kari Schultz have crisscrossed Florida from Key West to the Emerald Coast, hunting down stories of ghosts and reports of paranormal activity. Their previous books, Eerie Florida and Freaky Florida provided armchair explorer and amateur ghost hunters a literal roadmap to the state’s spookiest sites. Now they present an all-new installment of Florida weirdness in Creepy Florida. Check in at The Biltmore in Coral Gables to spot the ghost of slain Fatty Walsh roaming the thirteenth floor. Sit down for a meal with the spirit of Ethel Allen at Ashley's Restaurant in Rockledge. Visit haunted graveyards, museums, parks and battlefields. Hear macabre stories of spectral pirates, gangsters, witches and madmen. From phantasmagoric packs of Madam McCoy's girls in Pensacola to the ghostly clacking of Hemingway's typewriter in the Keys, Mark Muncy and Kari Schultz lead brave readers along Florida’s border with the great beyond.