Pg. 69: Margaret Cezair-Thompson's "The Pirate's Daughter"

The current feature at the Page 69 Test: Margaret Cezair-Thompson's The Pirate's Daughter.

About the book, from the publisher:

In 1946, Hollywood’s most famous swashbuckler, Errol Flynn, arrived in Jamaica in a storm-ravaged boat. After a long and celebrated career on the silver screen, Flynn spent the last years of his life on a small island off the Jamaican coast, where he fell in love with the people, the paradisiacal setting, and the privacy, and brought a touch of Tinseltown glamour to the West Indian community.

Based on those years, The Pirate’s Daughter imagines an affair between the aging matinee star and Ida, a beautiful local girl. Flynn’s affections are unpredictable but that doesn’t stop Ida from dreaming of a life with him, especially after the birth of their daughter, May.

Margaret Cezair-Thompson weaves stories of mothers and daughters, fathers and lovers, country and kin, into this compelling, dual-generational coming-of-age tale of two women struggling to find their way in a nation wrestling with its own independence.

Among the acclaim for The Pirate's Daughter:

“A book-club-ready saga with two gorgeous women at its center [and] a knockout ending that reveals treasure buried beneath the sand-encrusted secrets.”
–People (Critic’s Choice)

“[A] delicious premise ... sets Margaret Cezair-Thompson’s The Pirate’s Daughter in motion, and from there, the novel never stops for breath once.”
–O: The Oprah Magazine

“Enthralling ... ideal for readers looking to be swept away.”
–The Christian Science Monitor

“[A] ripe romantic novel ... with page-turning panache ... a mélange of family saga, love story, and political-historical fiction served up in a tropical setting.”
–The Boston Globe

“The Pirate’s Daughter captures perfectly the essence of Jamaica.... Your efforts will be rewarded with rich escape.”
–Dallas Morning News

“A surprising yarn that is rich, salty and ultimately satisfying ... The Pirate’s Daughter sparkles with characters real and imagined.”
–Washington Post

“An unabashedly frangipani-scented–and wholly satisfying–armchair holiday of a read.”
–Vogue

Read an excerpt from The Pirate's Daughter, and learn more about the novel at the publisher's website.

Margaret Cezair-Thompson is also the author of the widely acclaimed novel, The True History of Paradise. Her other publications include short fiction, essays, and articles in Callaloo, The Washington Post, Journal of Commonwealth Literature, Graham House Review, and Elle. Born in Jamaica, West Indies, she teaches literature and creative writing at Wellesley College.

The Page 69 Test: The Pirate's Daughter.

--Marshal Zeringue