Publisher's Synopsis
In the annals of pirate history, there unfolded a love story which began in the taverns of Plymouth in England and found its culmination on the shores of Newfoundland. It was the tale of Eric Cobham and Maria Lindsay, Canada's pirate queen.
Born into the bleak embrace of poverty in the bustling harbor town of Poole, England, Eric was pressed into service on a humble fishing vessel as a young boy. His life took a tumultuous turn when he ran away and found himself entangled in the web of a smuggling operation along the English coast. His ventures led him down a treacherous path, culminating in a fateful encounter with the law, which cast him into the confines of the infamous London Newgate prison. Freshly released, he grasped at opportunity. Eric pilfered a rich merchant's purse and used the spoils to carve a humble existence, purchasing a small ship. It was in a dimly lit tavern in Plymouth that fate wove the threads of destiny for Eric Cobham and Maria Lindsay, a spirited but poor barmaid who saw in Eric a kindred partner. United in purpose and bound by love, Eric and Maria rose a pirate crew sailing the English Channel. With each successful raid, their coffers swelled with ill-gotten gains, until they amassed enough wealth to purchase a larger ship with formidable armaments. Trying to evade the King's war ships in the English Channel, the crew set sail for the New World, arriving in Nantucket, where they plundered a merchant ship. The pirate couple found sanctuary at Sandy Point on the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, where the crew plotted daring raids upon merchant ships traversing the treacherous waters of the Cabot Strait and the Strait of Belle Isles. Year after year, they returned to England with more riches, their legend growing with each daring escapade. In the streets of London, the couple encountered Elisa, a forced prostitute. Moved by compassion and a sense of justice, Eric's crew swiftly dealt with Elisa's oppressors, and she became an indispensable member of their pirate family. As the years unfurled, Eric, Maria, and Elisa forged a bond. But the law was catching up with them, so the crew decided to disband. With their ill-gotten wealth, the Eric, Maria, and Lisa purchased an estate near Le Havre in France, where they retired life of piracy, carrying out only one more raid against the ship of a vile French slave trader. Eric summoned his old crew from Plymouth and embarked upon this final adventure, intercepting the ship laden with riches from the Caribbean. Maria and Elisa turned their attention to a new calling, founding an orphanage, as Eric, now a land owner and magistrate, used his newfound authority to dispense justice to the poor with a fair and even hand.
