On Stranger Tides Kindle Edition

If you're looking at this as a novelization of the third Pirates of the Caribbean movies, you will be disappointed. The only vague connections are, an (unwilling) pirate nicknamed Jack, Blackbeard as a character, the fountain of youth and the use of vudun magic. There are no mermaids, no Jack Sparrow, and no dead monkey named Jack. I love 5he POTC franchise but deeply resent that they plundered (like my pirate reference?) this book mostly for it's well known title, in certain circles, to bring viewers to their film.The story herein is about a young man John Chandanque, bent on revenge, his uncle Stephen managed to steal his father's very hefty inheritance, without his father ever having been aware, by claiming he was dead. The father passed away years later poor and broken. John is determined to face him down and reclaim what is now, by right, his inheritance, and see his uncle Stephen in chains. While on his way to Haiti he is on a ship that has only three other passengers, a well known, in his circles, scholar Harwood, his daughter, Elizabeth, supposedly suffering from some weakening condition, and her "Doctor" Leo Friend. John befriends Elizabeth and just as they are hours from landing in Port-au-Prince Haiti, their ship is taken by pirates. John, without really thinking, challenges the pirate captain Davies, wounding him, Davis, liking his spunk, offers him a rare choice, "Join us or die." John takes his place on the pirate crew and they rename him Jack Shandy. This begins John/Jacks adventure into magic, buccaneering, and finally to become a reluctant hero all to save a girl whom he didn't realize until near the end, he loves. There are pirate raids, there is Juan Ponce de Leon, the Fountain of Youth (well kind of), Blackbeard/Ed Thatch, and a wild land, still new and young, bubbling with magic that a 'normal' 'civilized' could only barely understand, and one young man doing his best to stay a good man and fight evil and injustice.

Yes, one of the greatest pirate fantasy fiction novels ever written is available on audio book, and it is read by...Bronson Pinchot, and it's fantastic!I have been a big fan of Tim Powers' novels for years, and like most fans frustrated that such a master of magic historical fiction (magic-punk?) has had many of his greatest works OUT OF PRINT despite multiple awards and praise. I had heard quite a while ago, when I first started tracking down his books, about him having written a pirate novel of some merit, but everyone I had talked to said it was near impossible to find.After searching and searching, I finally found a friend that let me borrow his prized copy and read it (he actually made me leave a rare book of mine in his possession as collateral for its return); I am glad I did because On Stranger Tides is now one of my favorite books.Like several of Powers' "historical" novels it draws heavily from what (little) is known about real people who actually existed but who have had legends and even myths built up around them, in this case the "real" historical journeys of Edward Teach (Blackbeard) and his noteworthy death. He then weaves the truths together with plausible paranormal ulterior motives and engrossing adventures until he has crafted a tapestry of such cunning that it sends you back to the history books to make sure that it is fiction.Bronson Pinchot's reading of this book is a wonder. Despite being mostly known for his sit-com performances on TV, he is actually classically trained in the fine arts, sculpture, and architecture; well educated (Yale University, magna cum laude); and a veteran performer of both stage and screen. His telling of the story glides easily from narration to character as only a masterful storyteller can. I cannot imagine how a full cast could have done it any better.I have read that his other audiobook performances have likewise gotten rave reviews and he has even won an Audie Award for his audio book performances. I am planning on seeking those out next.The production is from Blackstone Audio on 10 disks (or MP3) so you are assured that the recordings are clean, balanced, and well edited as well.

It is a shame that the blurb on the back cover says it was the inspiration for the Pirates of the Caribbean movie of the same name. Myself and a lot of fans of the book wanted it to be,but it wasn't even close. The only similarity between them is that they both have Blackbeard in them.In our novel;Blackbeard was at once an apprentice Boccor or Witch Doctor. At the age of 14 he attempted to place a soul into the body of an undead person. Unfortunate for the populace of Port Royal,this can only be accomplished over water and never land. The Loa performing the soul transplant noted this problem and implemented the simplest solution,moving that portion of the island out to sea. Thus began the career of the dreaded Pirate Blackbeard,feared for his viciousness at sea and for his skills in arcane magic. The Loa of the cemetery known as Baron Samedi was kept close,by the low burning fires of the canon wicks woven into Blackbeard's mane. With Samedi as his protector,Blackbeard sought to rule in this life and in the other,eventually becoming an Loa himself. Unfortunately the time of magic and piracy was drawing to a close. Blackbeard needed to find someone who could take him to the place which exists between planes,but quick. One other man had been there and escaped,a young Spaniard by the name of Juan Ponce De Leon. Juan had drawn his own blood there and thus planted his immortal roots by the fount of magic. This is just my interpretation of one such kernel of which there are many in this book. If you are a fan of Pirate Lore or Olde Nautical Literature then this book is a must read. I must confess that i was neither until i read and reread it some 30 years ago in a hospital bed with Pneumonia. The writing is tight and fast paced and never boring. Just move that cursor over to that yellow button marked Add To Cart. You and the Baron both will be glad you did.

Ya, I'm not a book critic or even a big reader. Bought this book to read while on a trip to the Caribbean. Overall I was not enthralled. The book was a little confusing and messy. Not terrible, just not noteworthy for me.

It arrived fairly soon. Perfect purchase. Pocket size book and the letters are quite small by the way. Good state in general

Le vrai climax se trouve au milieu du livre, il est génial, magique (et même un peu quantique) mais après le rythme et l'histoire retombent un peu jusqu'à la fin, sans pour autant que le livre devienne ennuyeux.Il y a une vraie finesse d'écriture et la lecture en VO n'est pas toujours des plus facile, avec toutes ces expressions et ce vocabulaire liés à la mer, à la navigation et à la piraterie et aussi parce qu'on a affaire à une écriture pas simpliste tout simplement, ce qui nous change du tout-venant de la littérature de fantasy (non, je n'ai pas dis de la littérature récente en général... !) Bref, un voyage intéressant entre les Caraïbes et les marécages des côtes de Floride, dans un monde de flibuste où la magie existe encore...

...blend exceptionally well in this action-packed tale of swashbuckling, voodoo, piracy and adventure.I was astonished to have missed this story, written already in the late 1980s, that inspired The Secret of Monkey Island (one of the best computer games ever to have been written) and the Pirates of the Caribbean movies (which include the very decent first part of the franchise). It is written very well in the style you get used to and love with Tim Powers. The plot is pretty complicated and I do not want to spoil anything here, so let’s just keep it simple: It’s the dawn of the age of piracy. Britain is sending a governor, soldiers and warships into the Caribbean and there will be a final amnesty for all pirates who repent. Yet, this is still months in the future when the novel starts, and bloodthirsty (yet strangely amicable) pirates still roam the sea. The mightiest of these have allied themselves with bocors, priest of vodun (voodoo) that help them survive lethal wounds, trick their enemies and perform other dees of legend.Tim Powers cleverly weaves historical facts on the iconic persons of the age of piracy with the supernatural without ever getting to the ridiculous lengths of the later Pirates of the Caribbean movies. (Blackbeard‘s seeminlgy erratic actions are brilliantly explained in the nocel to give just one example). The story includes many of the cliches we love with pirate tales, yet adds enough novelty to go far beyond Captain Blood and Treasure Island. I loved every single page and was totally hooked, even though there are quite a lot of characters and a complex story that includes a lot of twists and attention to details.I wholeheartedly recommend this book not only to fans of piracy novels (from which there are far too few good ones) as well as those who like original and clverly written fantasy. An inspiring tale of what fantastic literature can be!

First read it in the early nineties and read it again many times.