As dazzling and action packed as the best novels of James
Rollins, George MacDonald Fraser, and Steve Berry, The
Barbary Pirates will have readers cheering for William
Dietrich and his dashing hero, Ethan Gage! Swashbuckling
American explorer and ladies' man Ethan Gage has seen his
fair share of danger, having braved the sands of Egypt, the
perils of the Atlantic Ocean, and the harsh wilderness of
early America. Once more, he finds himself in a desperate
race—this time with the Barbary Pirates, a powerful band of
Muslim outlaws from North Africa. Also after Ethan is his
nemesis—and former lover—Aurora Somerset, member of a
dangerous sect called the Egyptian Rite. The prize is the
Mirror of Archimedes, an ancient superweapon that, according
to legend, once burned a Roman fleet with its power. In
1802, this death ray could tip the balance of power in the
Mediterranean, and Ethan must stop the pirates from using it
against the American, English, and French fleets. From the
salons and brothels of the Palais Royal of Paris, where the
quest for information about his lost love Astiza involves
real-life scientists and engineers—including inventor Robert
Fulton—Ethan must travel at Napoleon's behest to the canals
of Venice, the caves of Santorini, the dungeons of Tripoli,
and finally to treachery on the high seas in the
Mediterranean. Can Ethan rescue Astiza without betraying the
cause of his own United States? Can he save the two-year-old
son he only recently discovered he had without allowing the
Egyptian Rite to finally dominate the world? And when the
sun rises on the Mirror of Archimedes, will everything Ethan
cares about be set afire? Delivering the fast-paced
adventure, uncanny wit, and page-turning historical
excitement that readers have come to expect from the
masterful William Dietrich, The Barbary Pirates is Ethan
Gage at his winningest, most hilarious, and most death defying.