S J Garland

Captain Hawk
By S.J. Garland
Maple Kakapo Publishing Ltd.; 2015

At a request by letter from his father, gambler Nathaniel Hawk sails to Singapore. Upon arrival, Nathaniel's father, Sabastian Hawk isn't around. In fact, the famous East India Company captain is late to return, and seems to have gone missing. Did he meet his demise at the hands of a mysterious ghost ship - or is he just delayed?
Will Nathaniel Hawk give up his hedonistic lifestyle and once again sail on a ship in search of what happened to his father? And if he does, will Nathaniel find his father - or survive his own possible encounter with the rumoured ghost ship?
S.J. Garland's new book, "Captain Hawk" is a well researched, well written, all around fabulous tale of adventure!
I received this book for free to review. I am a member of Goodreads, LibraryThing, NetGalley and maintain a book blog at dbettenson.wordpress.com.… (plus d'informations)

Explosive foray into the early, heady days of Singapore!

Mad dogs and Englishman go out in the noon day sun!
Ah! Cricket, in Singapore, I can't even contemplate it. Even the thought of the heat makes me feel faint. Apparently cricket is part of the expat life in Singapore at the time of Sir Stamford Raffles and the First Resident, William Farquhar. Singapore in 1823 was the new trading frontier on the Malay Peninsula--a clearing house for rare spices, silks and porcelains from China. A place where the quest for riches vies with the unruliness of fortune seekers, trade ships and their crews, the Chinese secret organizations, and the Dutch threat.
Nathaniel Hawk has come to Singapore at his fathers request, only to find him gone, out testing a new ship. His father, Captain Sebastian Hawk, a renowned captain for the East India company is due back soon.
Only Captain Hawk doesn't return! From a handful of survivors it's determined that his ship was sunk by a rumoured 'ghost' ship, a will-o'-the-wisp, all black and terrible, hard to see against the twilight seas, with multiple and terrible guns that wreak havoc on its unsuspecting prey. It seems Captain Hawk has joined the litany of other victims.
Then there's the mad Dutch captain, Collaart who wants Nate's head at any cost, and First Resident Farquhar seems just the man to hand Nate over, especially when trade is being threatened.
So how much does cricket have to do with sailing ships, trade in the East Indies and this book. Perhaps it's the code, perhaps it's the not giving up, of playing the game out. Or perhaps for the English, it's a touch of home. I like the following explanation. Charlotte Carstairs asks her father's headman, 'Why do all trading metaphors come from cricket?" Bingham replies, "I imagine because it's we Brits are great at both.'
Put together the steamy, seamy sides of Singapore, the quarrels at the very top of society, questions about the safety of trade ships that could make and break fortunes, and the deteriorating personal relations that develop between Nate and his friends and there's plenty of grist for an explosive story. Add to the mix the charming and headstrong Charlotte Carstairs who will do anything to ensure her father's trading house succeeds, rather than unravel into bankruptcy and poverty; include the lure of opium, and the threat of cholera, and the recipe for mystery and intrigue deepens.
Nathaniel is a reluctant hero, of strong opinions and loyalties, an able fighter and seaman, who has turned his back on the sea. He only wants to hie back to England but finds himself thwarted by fate at every turn.
I enjoyed Garland's 'Markinch ' series immensely, and if this first book of the Hawk Legacy series is anything to go by, then this latest series will certainly live up to the same high standard previously set by Garland.

ARC from author… (plus d'informations)

History and mystery entwine!

An exciting tale of intrigue, loyalty and betrayal set against the Old Pretender, James Francis Stuart's initial invasion near Edinburgh in 1708.
Captain Esmond Clyde-Dalton is the excise officer at the village of Markinch. In reality he works for England's master spy, Colonel Manners . Fresh from the new world, Esmond's choice of tomahawks as hidden weapons hints at a darker past. His relationship with Manners hints at even more tangled depths.
Philomena Clunes and her father Magnus Clunes have been arrested as jacobite sympathizers. Esmond is in love with Phil and follows her to Edinburgh to see to her safety and her innocence. En route to Edinburgh Castle dungeons Phil is seized by masked rebels and spirited away.
The back alleys below Edinburgh Castle come vividly to life as Esmond and his new allies search for Phil--always just one step behind.
An engrossing read, seething with the emotion felt on both the English and Jacobite sides as forces in Edinburgh prepares for the Pretender's invasion. The invasion's supporters includes French mercenaries and a number of unknown Protestant Scottish clan lords
Esmond is desperate to rescue Phil and to find a treasonous List of supporting Protestant Lords.
A harrowing chase from Edinburgh in wintery conditions and across the Firth of Forth as the Pretender is approaching feeds the tension of the situation. Unexpected twists and turns feed the ever growing mystery and frantic search by Esmond to find Phil and clear her name, and to free himself from Manner's tyranny by finding the List. A riveting read! So much so, that I just had to buy the 1st book in the series to get the back story on Captain Esmond Clyde-Dalton, a character I sympathize with immensely.

A NetGalley ARC… (plus d'informations)