Swashbuckling Tales of West Pirates

Well known in the city of Bristol for his Pirate Walks around the harbourside, Peter James Martin’s enduring fascination with the seafaring rogues inspired him to produce this book of swashbuckling tales. Weaving together colourful folklore and intriguing facts, the collection of stories about some of the West Country of England’s most notorious characters reveals this area’s connections to the Spice Routes and the Americas thanks to pirates such as Blackbeard and Barefoot Mary. Exotic harems, seasick leopards, hidden treasure and brutal deaths abound, and those, if we are to believe Pirate Pete, are just the bits that are true.

You might not have thought of the likes of Sir Walter Raleigh and Francis Drake as pirates previously, but as Peter’s tales show, there’s a thin line between the Crown’s lawfully employed privateers and bloodthirsty pirates, and the distinction generally depends on whether you’re on the sending or receiving end of cannon fire. Illustrated by original artwork, it’s a rollicking romp through Bristol’s dark maritime past, packed with adventures to thrill all ages.